Nancy B.B. Meyer plays with some of her friends she has rescued from animal shelters. All of these dogs have epilepsy or other medical conditions, which make them harder to place with a family. But Meyer refuses to give up on any animal, believing that there is a home somewhere for each one of them.

This week when you’re passing out your Valentines, Nancy B.B. Meyer would like you to remember to give a little extra love to the animals in your life. Or better yet, think about bringing a new animal into your life.

Meyer has been adopting and helping to place animals from shelters for over 30 years. From dogs and cats to snakes, goats and pigs, Meyer has been able to find a home for every animal brought to her attention. And she’s never given up on an animal because it’s old or sick or has been abused. Those are precisely the animals that Meyer feels deserve extra human compassion.

"To some people, it might seem senseless to adopt a dog that’s 15 years-old," she said. "But in the short time he has left, that dog can be a loyal and loving friend to someone. And that someone can reap the benefit of that love and find satisfaction knowing they performed an act of kindness and humanity."

A firm believer that a home can be found for any animal, Meyer’s highest aspiration is to turn all animal shelters into no-kill facilities. "Unless an animal is in continuous pain, I don’t believe they should be killed because they seem to be unwanted," Meyer said. "No animal is unwanted. The person that wants them just hasn’t been found."

Meyer works out of her Scottsville Road (three miles south of Jefferson Road) home, the big old Victorian farmhouse decorated with scads of big red hearts inside and out. Called the "Cupid House" by some of her neighbors, Meyer said the growing number of hearts adorning the house, trees and fences, stemmed from the reaction to the first heart she nailed up outside.

"I had just finished hanging it up when an older woman pulled up and told me how beautiful it was," Meyer said. "So I hung up more." Many people have let Meyer know that her Cupid House gives them a lift as they drive by. Giving people and animals a lift is what makes Meyer tick.

Clearly, the woman who is a vegetarian and can’t kill a bug believes that people benefit from having animals in their life as much as, if not more, than animals benefit from being adopted.

In fact, she goes so far as to declare that Animals are Angels, which is the name of her newly revised book available at Borders Bookstore. Originally published in 1995, Animals are Angels is a collection of stories people have shared with Meyer about their pets. With chapters like Courageous Companions, Heroic Partners, Considerate Compadres and Fallen Heroes, the book chronicles the true tales of pets that have been rescued from shelters and ended up making an extraordinary difference in the lives of their owners.

Meyer includes her own story in the book.

Involved in an abusive relationship in the early 1980s (she is also the author of "Diaries of 1,000 Battered Women"), Meyer rescued a German shepherd-mix dog from a shelter. It was suspected that Rinny Tin Tin had been used in illegal dog fights. He cowered from everyone and the shelter had decided to put him to sleep. Meyer took Rinny Tin Tin home with her where he continued to act submissive and frightened. Two days later, when Meyer’s boyfriend began to beat her, Rinny Tin Tin attacked the abuser who choked Meyer to the point of unconsciousness. Meyer believes her newly adopted dog saved her life.

One of Meyer’s favorite stories is about Old Ralph. His owners were moving and decided the St. Bernard was too old to take with them. They planned to put Old Ralph to sleep, but someone offered to give Old Ralph a home. The St. Bernard spent most of his time lying around - moving slowly and infrequently. But one day he moved extraordinarily fast. Old Ralph pulled a six-month old baby, the child of visiting friends, from the pool before the adults even noticed the baby was in the water.

Another story tells about a 56 year-old man that had suffered from severe stuttering all of this life. Shortly after he adopted a dog from a shelter, he noticed that when he was alone talking to the dog, he didn’t stutter. A speech pathologist was able to help him use this special situation to eventually overcome his stuttering.