If you have a pet that's more like family, then you know what it takes to ensure he or she is kept fed, healthy, safe, and clean. It's a lot of work, but can you imagine nursing 20 sick and dying dogs back to full health? Well, that's what taxi driver, Devon Usher, specializes in.

Usher runs a foster home for dogs that have been abused and left for dead. He takes them off the street and gives them the love and attention they need before sending them off to a caring home.

It's a big task, but Usher's love for animals pushes him to save as many of them as he can. Today, Courtney Menzies visited him at home and has this story.

Dogs are man's best friend, but for one man, they're more like his children. That's because Devon Usher doesn't just keep pets, he rescues them and nurses them back to health.

Usher works along with Animal Aid, a rescue organization that he said he's been a part of for over a year. He told us that when they asked for his help, as an animal lover, he couldn't refuse.

Devon Usher, Animal Rescuer

"I'm a taxi driver but I met these ladies out of the blue. They needed help with dogs so they asked me if I could be the one to go around and help them with the animals and stuff, like rescue them, if they are sick, pick them up, take them to the vet, or anything like that. I was living at a house and I was getting sick in that house, so they took me out of that house and they put me in this house, and they asked me if I could just stay here and take care of the animals, feed them, make sure they're alright, if they're sick, I take them to, I bring them back, just a daycare for them, a caretaker for them."

"Since I've been here I've saved like 20 dogs already, since I've been here, like 20 dogs, and we've found homes for more."

And it's not just dogs, Usher also currently has seven cats living with him.

It's not an easy - or cheap - undertaking. Usher often has to coax animals into his vehicle and bring them back from death's door. But he says all the time, money, and effort is worth it to see those wagging tails.

Devon Usher, Animal Rescuer
"It's rewarding for me because when you see an animal go from almost dying to going back to a healthy state, it's amazing. Who wouldn't want to see that? But like I said, people are abusive towards animals and it's not right. I'm not abusive towards animals, I try my best to help them, but I can't take all."

"But it's rewarding for me because at least I can see these dogs getting help. See they're happy, and nobody can't tell me they're not happy, sad dogs don't do that."

"Scooby, he's the last rescue. He was tied with two cement blocks around him and thrown in the sea and a guy found him and brought him here for us and that's how he looks now, he didn't look like that before, he was really mangy and his hair was falling off, he had a lot of Cole in his eye, bad throat cold, also a nasal cold, so all of that we had to try to get rid out of him and now he's very good now, he eats well, he plays when he's ready, he's a nice dog, but everybody looks at him, oh he's a pit bull, he's aggressive, he's not."

In fact, Scooby is a laid back pit, who just needed a little love. And like the other rescues, he will soon find his forever home, which is always bittersweet for Usher.

Courtney Menzies:
"How difficult is it for you to part ways with a dog you've spent so long caring for?"

Devon Usher, Animal Rescuer
"Sometimes it's kind of hard because I had two that I rescued already and I had to part with them. One was named Miracle, and she was my first dog I rescued, her name was Miracle, she is beautiful, she lives on Plues Street right now, she's a house dog now, she doesn't live outside, and she's big. But it was hard for me to let her go because we grew a bond and I brought her back from almost dying, like literally, skin and bones."

"And the next one was Sparky, I think Sparky he was named, but I missed him too because he was a lovable dog too and he was close to me because I rescued him from he was small. That's how it goes, when you rescue an animal and you see how it comes from sick to healthy, that is the amazing part about it."

Courtney Menzies:
"What's the most difficult part of the entire process for you when you're bringing back a dog to health?"

Devon Usher, Animal Rescuer
"The feeding process because sometimes they don't want to eat and when they don't want to eat, that's kind of hard because they make you feel like they're giving up so you have to stay there so you can give them in their mouth, push it in their mouth for them to try to feel like they want eat because it's not all the time the dogs they want to eat when they're sick and then, sometimes like I said they get abused a lot, so me as another human being come towards them, they put up that tension, so I try to rub them up, love them up, for them to try to feel relaxed with me."

So, this cabbie with a kindness for canines and cats has proven even the most scarred animals - as basically just like us - they just need a little tenderness.

Usher also accepts donations to assist him with his work. Right now, he's hoping for pallets to build more dog houses and a grooming kit so that he can also become a professional groomer. If you want to help him out, you can contact him at 613-9826.