BELLAIRE • MEMORIAL • RIVER OAKS • TANGLEWOOD • WEST UNIVERSITY

Love for animals

By Abby Golub, age 13 | May 1, 2018

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PROTECTOR Abby Golub, a seventh grader at St. Mark’s Episcopal School, raised almost $3,000, mostly from selling homemade soap, to help save wildlife. Here, she’s pictured with her neighbor’s dog, Livee. (Photo: Jordan Scheiner)

I have always loved animals. If someone was walking their dog, I could never pass it without asking its owner to pet it. I have a heart for all living creatures. One time there was a moth stuck in the subway in London, and I started crying because it couldn’t get out.

I have grown up around nature and animals. My family’s ranch, 2 Creeks, is halfway between Houston and Austin, and we try hard to make it a nature preserve. Animals can come on our property as a refuge where they can be safe and not be hunted. At 2 Creeks, I wake up and watch the deer, bees, rabbits and armadillos. When we go fishing there, if someone does catch a fish, I always have them put it back in the pond water.

For my bat mitzvah project, I raised almost $3,000 for WildAid, a nonprofit organization that is trying to stop poaching and illegal wildlife trade. I mostly raised the money by selling homemade soaps. My main selling spot was right outside Little Matt’s restaurant. I turned our kitchen into a soap factory for several months. I even gave a talk to 50 people at the Houston Zen Center on the dangers of poaching.

Did you know endangered animals are slaughtered for their body parts? Rhinos are killed just for their horns. Or, how about this fact – there are less than 4,000 tigers left in the wild. Oh, here is something terrifying – only 3.5 percent of our oceans are officially protected. I could go on, but here's just one more: Fins from up to 73 million sharks are used in shark fin soup each year.

I recently got a Cavalier puppy and named her Lucy. She makes me laugh and smile and fills me with joy. She has a funny waddle. It reminds me of a penguin. I wish I could help other people find the same joy in animals. My “dream” job right now is to own a huge house and fill it with rescue animals and put them in loving homes. I wish everyone could have a Lucy.

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