Stray Dogs and Starving Children

A few years back, I found a dog.  It’s a long story, but to cut it short—I “rescued” a dog that turned out to need serious medical care.  I might not have been so generous about things, but Kareem (a pitt mix; I live in a neighborhood where every dog is a pit mix) was the sweetest creature that ever lived.  Several thousand dollars later, Kareem died. It was pretty awful. The result? I developed a newfound commitment to animals. I joined a fostercare/rescue group, took in lots of orphans on a temporary basis, and started combing the streets around mine for animals in need.   About six months later I was losing my mind.  I’d thrown away furniture and carpets (incontinent cat), gone into debt, and run myself ragged.  So I talked to my rabbi.  I asked him about what kind of obligation Judaism requires us to have regarding our pets and other animals.  It took him a long time to answer.   Finally, he explained several things to me. 1. We are supposed to be good to animals. 2. We are NOT supposed to let our care of animals get in the way of more important responsibilities (family, Torah, helping people) 3. There is a difference between helping an animal who comes to you in need (say, a dog who stumbles starving into your yard), and seeking out animals who might need your help. (This applies, I think, to non-dog situations as well) Which was helpful for me at the time.  It eased my guilt.  I kept feeding the dog that lived in my hedge, and found homes for my foster pets, but I stopped cruising for new hard luck cases, and I stopped volunteering with the rescue group (which WAS making it hard to take care of other obligations). But now I’m thinking about Kareem, and I’m remembering the things the rabbi said, and I’m turning to you for assistance. Two kinds of help. First, I wonder if anyone can offer text support for what the rabbi told me.  I’m especially interested in #3.  I want to know if anyone can show me where Judaism draws a distinction between the need we stumble over in the world, and the need that’s out there in the dark, unbeknownst to us. And second, I want to ask what other people think of this in general.  Both #2 and #3 seem to have a pretty huge range of interpretations in our world today.   #2 is hard for me because there’s such an array of family dynamics.  What does it mean to “take care of” your family?  I mean, is helping animals (not to mention other kinds of charity) supposed to come AFTER feeding your baby?  No!  But what about setting up college funds?  Buying your son a new car when he turns 16?  Purchasing a vacation home? And #3 is just tricky in general, since we live in a world that we all KNOW is chock full of need. Starving kids and stray animals and so on. Do I need to wait for hungry kids to come into my yard, asking for bread, before I send a few bucks to Feed the Children?  Or is a TV commercial enough? What say you?