Sad News

I heard something on the news last night that really made me sad. Someone locally abandoned two dogs in a pen with no food or water. They just left them there to die.

It’s happened before. Someone left a dog in a crate with no food or water and just abandoned it. That dog died a horrible death of dehydration and starvation. The two dogs in the pen were on their way to the same kind of death.

I just don’t understand this. We have so many shelters and rescues around here. Sometimes they’re strapped for cash and overcrowded but all the animals get fed and loved while they are there. And they have a chance at getting a new loving home.

If people can’t surrender unwanted pets to a shelter or rescue, they could at least put an ad on Craigslist looking for a new home for their pet. Someone could give the pet a home. Just abandoning your pets by leaving them in a crate or pen or tied up is cruel and inhumane. Turning them loose would give them a chance to find food, water, and shelter. It isn’t any better than abandoning them but they aren’t going to die as fast from starvation and dehydration. But it does give them a slightly better chance at survival.

I read an article about abandoning pets the other day. It’s at www.care2.com/greenliving/abandoning-pets-a-form-of-violence.html. The author blames violence in video games, movies, television, and music for making people less compassionate. She also claims that people are like animals, only caring for our own needs and comfort, and we’re not going to get any better. Both of those thoughts could be true. But I don’t believe that we’re not going to get any better.

I think we are supposed to be the best we can be and take care of the planet and all that is on it. To do that means we have to make conscious decisions. One of those decisions is that life is precious and you don’t abandon anyone whether they’re human or animal. You don’t leave them trapped somewhere to die a slow horrible death.

And I don’t believe that pets only care about themselves. Okay, maybe the cats do. They think I’m their staff. But my dogs are very compassionate. They have helped me through some really dark days in my life. They know when I’m upset or hurting and they do what they can to make things better. We could learn a lot from dogs. One thing we could learn is to treat living beings as humanely as possible. And we need to start teaching humane education at an early age. You’re never too young to learn how to treat others with compassion.

Until that happens, keep an eye out for each living being you come across. Make sure they’re being treated compassionately, have enough food, shelter, water, and a place to call home. And if they need more help than you can give, contact a rescue, shelter, police, or animal control. It should only take one phone call to stop the inhumane and cruel treatment.

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