Meet Megan

We had the good fortune of connecting with Megan and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Megan, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I founded Wonky Hearts Animal Haven in 2020 after years of work in animal care & fostering. I knew I had a very particular way of doing things that I really wanted to pursue, focusing on involved cases and potentially the research they could provide to a bigger picture alongside their care. So when 2020 came around and my own chronically ill family had to isolate & stop our traditional work, it felt like exactly the right time to focus on Wonky Hearts & the similarly challenged animals that often just needed adjustment & understanding.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I first started social media work out of necessity for the organization & to help in fundraising for the animals care. I was hesitant, funny enough, to create a TikTok account, but finally did.

But there came a time where storytelling these disabled cats stories the way I thought we were “supposed to” became too draining. I just couldn’t do it anymore.

They weren’t some sob story that so many make them out to be, they were so much more than that even if it was a bit complicated sometimes. So I realized that I either had to start story telling in the light hearted, goofy, abstract way I do to my friends & hope the internet received it well. That’s when everything changed.

It was easier for me to story tell, focusing on showing their quality of life amongst the medical chaos & encouraging education, research, & continued learning. With my own disabilities, I often make jokes about the more serious things & by doing the same thing with the cats stories seemed to help it to be easier for viewers to digest – they actually stayed around to listen and learn. My favorite comment I’ve ever gotten I still remember years later, “how does impending doom feel so safe with you?”

My TikTok account grew to 1.2 million followers and this changed everything for the cats – it feels unreal every day.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
This question is a bit funny to me, not only because of what an introvert I am, but because I made the most amazing friend online through all of this that does the same work I do. She runs a rescue in South Carolina and utilizes her TikTok following to do so. I don’t know how I lucked out with finding her & her coming into my life, but we are nearly the same person but on opposite sides of the country.

In December, she knew I was struggling with some more personal things & could understand them on a very intricate level given our lives similarities. She surprised me out of the blue and showed up for a visit.

The two of us, being introverted, pretty much just stayed home her whole trip and she would crochet while I would read and that – to us – was absolutely perfect 😂

But I did get to show her the local vets offices we use lol and we found our new favorite small vegan restaurant due to her dietary needs that I now love – Loving Hut in Orange.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
There is no way I could have done any of this without my rescue partner, Jennifer, and my husband, Jared, beside me. Not many partners dive into this whole animal rescue world & all it entails the way Jared has. Not only that, but the way he genuinely loves and cares about all that we do & how he supports me on days that my own disabilities have me limited.

I have learned so much from so many other organizations all around us and I do not think any of it would be possible without the whole community working together. The Little Lion Foundation especially believed in us from the very start and we couldn’t be more grateful for their guidance and expertise that first year & today still.

And to Baby Bird… my sweet little girl, your soul is forever apart of me and what you created and built for so many other cats is beyond my wildest dreams. And the community of millions who saw her light and were just as devoted to her journey. Nothing will ever feel so surreal & I can’t be more lucky that you all entered my life.

Website: https://www.wonkyheartsanimalhaven.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meganandtherescues?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61553944487357&mibextid=kFxxJD

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@meganandtherescues?si=5htA-dWnvwJ2duHt

Other: TikTok – https://www.tiktok.com/@meganandtherescues?_t=ZP-8w6tlD3Yycw&_r=1

Image Credits
Claudio A. Robles