Simon’s experience has drawn me more deeply into awareness of the extraordinarily powerful human impulse to rescue animals. This social phenomena, relatively new in America, now engages many thousands of people, mostly women it seems, and is mushrooming all over America, even as the will or resources to rescue people seems to be diminishing. People rescue dogs, cats, horses and donkeys, birds and rabbits. They travel to far parts of the country, even the world to find animals to rescue and bring home if there are not enough nearby. And there are often not enough nearby, because adoptable animals don’t stay long in shelters or often even get there.

The rescue impulse is everywhere – “No-Kill” shelters, rescue groups online, animal rights groups, political legislation, people eager to find animals in need and bring them back. As a nation, we are absorbed in helping animals.  I am in the midst of just such an experience with Simon, a donkey taken by police in desperate straits from a farm. This has drawn me once more into the intense world of animal rescue, where emotions are very strong.

My research has already led me to Carl Jung, among others, and his theory of the “Shadow,” a compelling theory first conceived to explore the nature of evil, but which has broadened to include human motive, unconsciousness impulses, and the impact of the psyche on creativity.

I think Jung’s Shadow Theory fits our impulses when it comes to animals. I took some photos of an old pony named “Rocky,” and was besieged by messages asking if he was being mistreated or abused (his barn had collapsed). Every day people ask me if Rocky is all right and ask me to visit him, because he might be needy or lonely or they are worried about him. Rocky is healthy and happy and well-cared for yet people seem to seem to need to see him as being in danger.

I get requests almost every day to revisit animals long gone from here, because people remember them and worry about them. Increasingly, our prism is on animals in trouble, not those living good lives. And our expectations for animals – that they live perfect “no-kill” and very unnatural lives at great expense in the midst of declining resources and considerable human need – are growing. Thus we spent many billions on animal health care, but the idea of human health care is bitterly controversial, even unthinkable. The more we see them as abused and in need – and so many are – the more we can carry out our rescue impulse. It sure came out with me and Simon.

I mentioned on the blog that I was considering keeping ewe Number 70, an old girl and one of my first sheep on the farm. “She wants to be with you, and she needs you,” one person wrote. “She deserves to retire in peace on your farm.” Several people wrote hoping she would not go to market, as if besieged farmers counting pennies to survive could feed and grain and shear retirement animals. No farmer would last a week doing that.

There is no reason of any kind to see No. 70 as wanting to stay here from her point of view. She seems perfectly happy with her flock in Vermont.  I was worried about it, not her. And she has no sense of her fate one way or the other.

But as Jung wrote, Shadow contents involve known and unknown aspects of the self, making the ego, the unconscious and the environment all factors in our emotions and expression. We can – do – transfer these impulses to animals.

We need to see Simon as grateful and appreciate.  It was fated. We chose each other. It was meant to be. We need to see Rocky as in need and, more than that, we need to see him saved. It is surely a powerful force within me.  But it is bottomless, potentially disturbing. We need see Number 70 as yearning to live with me. I often succumb to this, of course, and often contribute to it, usually unconsciously. I could fill up this farm with needy animals in a second, the more I brought here, the more trouble I would be in. In terms of time, energy, psyche, money and focus.  It is a tough impulse to resist. Like the wizards say, “no” can be the most important word in anybody’s vocabulary.

These are expressions of our Shadow psyche, feelings and ideas that come from within us, that are shadows, projected onto animals. They are not in the conversation, so we can make assumptions about them, put our thoughts and emotions into their mouths.

To me, the Rescue Impulse is worthy of examination and consideration, especially for the good people doing it. There is a sort of inverse idea of the Shadow at work here, I think. We want to do good, not evil.We need to do good. In our society, we are increasingly disconnected from one another, struggling through phone trees and impersonal or hostile text or e-mail messages.

Our feelings about animals – especially the rescue of animals – are often Shadow feelings, as they are spurred by emotions and impulses that we are not aware of consciously, but which drive us to act – to rescue.

We want to connect, feel good, repair the earth, and there are countless animals in need available to help us do that. And when we lost an animal, our Shadow feelings – loss, despair, fear – often emerges to deepen our grief. Perhaps if we understand that better, our suffering will be less.