MANITOULIN—It may be that saving one animal will not change the world, but surely for that one animal, the world will change forever. No truer statement can be made for rescue animals, and especially so, for the cats and dogs featured in the 2026 Rescue Pet Calendar. The project is a fundraiser in support of Manitoulin Pet Rescue (MPR), a foster-based registered charity that has successfully homed hundreds of cats and dogs since 2015. The calendar features 12 real-life rescue stories and pet portraits illustrated by Ashley White, of Gore Bay, who is a local artist and head of the initiative.
“I was inspired by my time with Boop,” said Ms. Whyte. “She’s an MPR foster that had been adopted but ended up living outside on her own for four years, by no fault of anyone but circumstance.” Ms. Whyte said that over the course of nearly a year, she helped Boop regain trust, a desire for companionship and ultimately the ability to be part of a home. “She was extremely reserved, but I feel that with patience, love always wins. I mean, isn’t that all anyone ever wants, is to be loved?”
The project saw its start last fall with submissions opening and inviting folks to share their rescue pet stories for a chance to be featured in the calendar. By the end of November, when submissions closed, Ms. Whyte had received well over 30 stories. Much to her surprise, there were close to double the number of cat submissions as there were for dogs. She mentioned that sitting down with a coffee and checking her email in the morning became a much-anticipated ritual, and that sometimes a tissue or two was necessary to make it through the reading.
In January, the finalists were announced and Ms. Whyte began working on the project’s writing and illustrations.
“Deciding which rescue pets would be included in the calendar was really difficult,” said Ms. Whyte. “Every rescue tale is part of a larger story that has something to teach and show us. Rescue stories often have anything but good beginnings, but it is also true that they can have happy endings, so I picked up what I feel represents some of the worst situations with the best outcomes.”
Stories were submitted in lots of different formats, sometimes short lists and recollections as well as full length documents. Ms. Whyte took these varied texts and created a metrical poem for each pet’s story, to the effect of being able to playfully tell what are sometimes dark tales.
“I ended up creating a book in calendar format,” laughed Ms. Whyte. “I’ve put my heart into this project and so I hope people feel that when they read it. We all face struggles in life, whether we are a cat, dog or human, and we all have something to learn from each other. Sometimes we end up rescuing one another. Compassion and kindness is what rescue stories are really about, they’re reminders of our best qualities.”
Each month shares a view into the diverse world of rescues and the unique challenges faced by each animal in their search for a home. Sometimes it’s about second chances, finding the right paw-mates, or making harrowing journeys and never giving up.
Accompanying the poetic recitals is an illustrated portrait of each pet based on photographs provided by their owners. Ms. Whyte said that when it came to the art, she was aiming for something vibrant and graphic, and the results were even more so than she had imagined.
“I’ve always loved cartoons and the simplicity behind their expressiveness. My initial intention was to create very basic characters to represent each animal, but the portraits took on a life of their own, as my work often does, and the style matured into something very fun with a touch of pop art flavour,” explained Ms. Whyte. “It took a little while to complete everything, including many print tests and colour adjustments, but the calendars are finally ready, and I am so excited to send them out into the world.”
Calendars are available at Kat’s Pet Rescue in Mindemoya, Buttercup Ice Creamery and Wild Creations in Gore Bay, as well as online at https://rescuepetcalendar.square.site for those who require shipping. Additionally, Ms. Whyte will be attending the Meaford Pet Expo to showcase the calendar project, raise funds and awareness about rescue efforts and animals.
