They do have feelings.......

I am angered often by the comments like "it is just a dog", or "why do you care so much it is not like they have feelings?", but they do.   They yelp and whine when in pain or when scared.   More importantly the unspoken bond a dog has with its owner never ceases to amaze me.

I must share this story it is one of the good ones... but get the kleenex.

Take the story of Lucas.

Lucas is a 5 year old shepherd/ collie mix.  He was living the life in NYC with his owner who saved him from the shelter and gave him a "furever" home.   That was until Hurricane Sandy hit.

During the storm the unspeakable happened.   His owner was killed.  When his owner's family came to the house that Lucas shared with his owner,  Lucas would not allow them to take him away from the house because he knew his owner  had died and did not want to leave his side.  

You would think someone would have taken Lucas in and try to give him some sense of normalcy and reassurance.   But for Lucas that was not the case.

The dog who survived the hurricane and lost his owner was taken back to the shelter his owner rescued him from years earlier.  Now lost, grieving and scared Lucas was not doing well at the shelter.  He did not understand how he went from having an owner and a nice home to having neither.  If it was not for a rescue organization called Louie's Legacy Animal Rescue, Lucas would have never made it out of the shelter for the second time.

I started following Lucas's story on Facebook and here is the description the Rescue organization used to describe his plight.

Lucas is VERY stressed in the shelter and it is showing, he excessively licks his nose so its all dried up and he's scratching himself so much he has some hair loss. Lucas is not a fan of the cage but we had a trainer come and evaluate him today and we think it's definitely something that with time he will adjust to. When Lucas is out of the cage and outside his personality shines through. We think that a home with older children is best because he appears to have been in a home as a single dog with no other animals and is used to quiet.

Lucas was scheduled to be put down.  HIs owner had died and his family turned him into the shelter.   That did not leave any options for Lucas.

The only way they could save him from impending euthanasia was to find Lucas a foster home.   Once the post was shared on Facebook, I was moved to tears the amount of people who went to great lengths to save this one dog.  The dog who loved his owner and stood by him even after his death, was now fighting for his own life staring through a shelter cage not knowing his fate.

Happily a foster family was found and Lucas was saved. He is still confused and sad but healing.

The rescues follow up picture and post read;

SI NY- Lucas is safe and sound and offically in his foster home. He just got a bath and is all clean. Look at the smile on his face! Lucas wants to thank everyone who fought to help save him as well as all the applicants that applied for him. 

Lucas-photo taken from Louie's Legacy Animal Rescue Site

My intent is not to pass judgement as I do not know the details of the situation, but I cannot see myself taking my family members pet to the shelter, especially after they died.  Especially in the situation like this where the bond between dog and man was stronger than many human relationships.

Thank goodness it ended well for this dog, but for many it does not.  If it was not for the many compassionate people who spend countless hours scouring shelters to save animals in need.  Happy endings like Lucas's would not be possible.

This story led me to think about my own pets and if I were to pass before they did.  What would happen to them?  This is a question we should all ask ourselves.   Do we have a family member or friend who will take our pets and love them as we do?   Or will they end up like Lucas and sent to the pound.

My dogs, Abbie and Fitch

Looks like I have some thinking to do.

What is Animal Abuse (Cruelty)

Animal Abuse...I have never understood how there could be such a thing.

How is it some people who choose to have a pet in their family turn around and treat it in such a manner that it constitutes abuse?   An animal is not forced upon a person.  The person chooses to add a pet as an addition to their family.  It is really quite simple.... do not choose to add a pet to the family if you can not treat it in the manner in which it deserves to be.

It is my opinion that part of the problem is people have a differing opinion of what abuse is.  It would be safe to say that in most cases naiveté and lack of education are a major factor in people not knowing what constitutes animal abuse but sadly, some cases are people who are just plain cruel and heartless.

Animal Abuse can be catagorized in two ways;  Passive Cruelty (Acts of Omission) and Active Cruelty (Acts of Commission).

Information taken from Pet-Abuse.com

Simply put, passive cruelty is animal neglect.   It is not the act that is the crime it is the lack of the act is a crime. This is why passive cruelty is considered an Act of Omission.  These acts include starvation, dehydration, allowing a collar to be imbedded in their skin, parasite infestation and inadequate shelter in extreme conditions.   One act many do not see as abuse, but is quickly being added to laws as being so, is keeping your pets on a lead or chain outside for long periods of time.  This is the one type of abuse that can be attributed to lack of education, and therefore educating the abuser in many cases can cure the problem.

On the other hand, active cruelty, implies malicious intent.  This is where a person intentionally inflicts harm and pain.  A person who commits an act of active cruelty have got to be signs of psychological problems with regards to the perpetrator.   It has been noted that this type of crime has been linked to sociopathic behavior.

Some of the crimes of active cruelty are dog fighting, physical or sexual abuse to the animal, or using or killing the pet to intimidate their partner in a more severe case of domestic abuse.

Regardless the case intentional or unintentional the cases of animal abuse have increased and the amount of people being held accountable seems to be on the decrease.   Between the plea bargains abusers are given and the lacksidasical approach to animal abuse the perpetrators of these crimes look at what they are doing as nothing more than an inconvenience.

In many of these cases the victim, the animal, pays the price for the mistakes for the human who chose to "care" for them.   That in itself is what is wrong with animal abuse.

As in the case of dog fighting, more often than not, the dog is deemed as vicious and euthanized.  Yet those who commit the crimes are often given nothing more than a slap on the hands because the legality of animals being "property" and not "living creatures" seems to make the crime not as serious.

When I first saw the following video it was the epitome of my utter contempt for those who abuse animals.   Yes in these cases there is an animal... and it is not the dog.

                                        Peace For Dogs PSA on You Tube

Animal Abuse whether be neglect, intentional abuse or dogfighting must stop and laws must change to allow the punishment fit the crime where the perpetrator is the one who is held accountable and not the victim.

When It All Began

As I stated in my introduction post I stated this blog began as an assignment.

 When thinking about what topic to blog about I decided to choose something I was knowledgeable about, something that meant a great deal to me.   It was not long until I realized that animal abuse is both an issue I am passionate about and and issue that others need to be made aware of its severity.

What better place than a blog.

I have always been compassionate where animals concerned.  I was raised being taught that animals are living creatures and they too deserve a level of respect.   I grew with that respect deepening.  If I had to choose an animal that would be my favorite, I guess I would have to say it is the dog.   Do not get me wrong I love all animals and have had many different ones throughout the years, but the dog, had a special place for me in my heart.

As I reached adulthood, I was more aware and even more perplexed at the way people felt about their pets.  People often thought of, and still think about their pets as property more than family. There is also  those who feel their pets are expendable once they got "bored" with them.   Sadly many people who have done this have the perception that because their dog is a good dog it will be adopted quickly. Sadly that is the exception and not the norm.   In reality their dog has a better chance of being put down than being adopted.

That factor alone is why I will always adopt my pets from shelters and rescues.

My passion for this cause has evolved in recent years.   The cases of animal abuse seem to be increasing and those who commit the crimes seem to find ways of not having to be accountable for those actions.

It is in my opinion,  that when our pets are looked at as property, especially in the eyes of the law, that is what exacerbates the situation.  When they begin to be looked at as family members, it is then we can begin to change the perception that people have.

Just a Dog

I have often been ridiculed because of my desire to help animals in need.   "What is the big deal" is what I often hear.  "It is just a dog" is their rationale to the abuse these animals must endure.

Animal abuse has been condoned for so long and pets have been looked upon as property.  This should not the case.

When a family makes the decision that they want a pet it should be because they want that pet as a family member.   These animals are not meant to be lawn ornaments who are chained and left outside. Nor are they disposable to be abused, tossed aside or left in the shelter because they just do not want the dog anymore.

These are living breathing creatures who have feelings and feel pain.  These are animals who want to be loved and love right back.  They do not judge you because of your weight, race or religion, and they do not care about your political preference.  They love you for you unconditionally plain and simple.

But somewhere along the line people have seemed to lose sight of that.   From professional football players who commit the most horrific crimes against these animals to the disgruntled spouse who feels murdering their family pet is a productive way to win an argument is sadly becoming more prevalent.

Thank goodness for the animal rescue community who fervently work together to rescue these animals and fight for laws that are starting to hold those who commit the crimes accountable for their actions instead of having animal abuse be looked at like a petty crime.  Yet any animal advocate will tell you it is not them who rescue these animals, it is the animals that rescue them.

In short Humanity's Shame is the human holding the leash not the animal on the other end of it.

Taken from Google Images