3 September 2012
Over hundreds of years animals have been the targets of neglect, abuse, murder, consumption, hunting for sport, etc. This topic is very controversial, and there are many people on each side of the fence that have their own opinions about the subject. This blog attempts to share my feelings and my opinions. I feel there is a deep need in this country and in others to reform the whole system of the way we look, feel and treat the animals of this country and world. My feeling is that animals should be treated with love and respect. It should be acknowledged that they do feel emotions just like we humans do. They are intelligent and understand far more than they are given credit for.
As we are all aware, when we allow, by intent or accident, female animals to become pregnant, by nature they have several offspring at one time. Thus, the multiplication of sheer numbers becomes an increasing problem as there are fewer homes and less people willing to care for the higher numbers and thus they become "homeless" in one way or another. An obvious solution to the increasing numbers is to spay and neuter. I feel this needs to be publicized more, to reach even the rural areas of the country and there needs to be more accessibility to lower cost spay and neuter clinics, even mobile clinics. This is the most logical and humane way to treat animal overpopulation with kindness and compassion.
The following are some of the subjects I wish to touch upon in this blog that I am so compassionate about. I know there are many out there who share my feelings and many who do not. I feel it is time to address these issues and make some major changes in the "system" to benefit the welfare of animals around this country and the world.
1. Animal abuse is on the rise. I am not sure why that is so but it is. The laws in this country (USA) do not seem to be protecting animals and, therefore, the "system" is broken. I would like to see reform and change in the justice system in order to better protect animals from cruelty, neglect and death. I would like to see longer jail sentences depending upon the severity of the abuse and a 3 strikes law put into place whereby an offender is sentenced to life in prison or the death penalty for conviction of 3 offenses of violence/abuse towards an animal.
2. Animal shelters/control facilities: These are usually run by "government" personnel who view their positions as "jobs". Many facilities advocate on their web pages that it is their policy to protect citizens from rabies, control stray animals and resolve complaints. Most of them do not advocate that they want to find homes for the animals brought to their facilities and most of them are too busy murdering animals rather than trying to fund raise, better the conditions in the facility or keep the facility sanitary enough so the animals do not get sick. A lot of these facilities label the animals negatively and thus an excuse for murder (the polite term they use is "euthanization"), such as the animal is "too shy" or has an "upper respiratory infection." The above behavior needs to be changed. There needs to be a "No Kill Nation" established so that animals are treated with respect and dignity. They need to be given a chance to survive and not methodically be put to death just for convenience sake.
3. Along the lines of #2 above is the problem of "dumping" unwanted animals in animal control facilities, loosely labeled as "shelters." In today's economy people have various reasons for separating themselves as caretakers for their pets. Many people who have animals in their homes do not really deserve to keep an animal as they do not have the ambition, kindness or time to take care of the animal. This leads to abuse, neglect, suffering and breaking of an animal's spirit. Others do care for their "pets" but have come upon hard times and barely have enough money to shelter and feed themselves so they unwillingly give up their beloved pets to the "shelters" hoping that the pet may find a new home and be better cared for. Consequently, these unfortunate circumstances create a bad situation for the animals and for the "shelters." I believe there need to be alternatives to this situation perhaps where the "shelters" ask for a donation when an animal is brought to their facility. This donation could help with the animal's care. This is what is done by some rescue agencies when they accept an animal into their facility for lifetime care. There could be other solutions also, which I will write about at the opportune time.
4. State Laws In General: Laws should protect the welfare and lives of animals and not advocate for "street justice" against any unwanted animal. In many rural areas of the country, it is not illegal to shoot a dog, for instance. Why is this so? The laws should promote the feeling that animals are NOT disposable, not for man's pleasure to abuse and not to be disrespected. The laws governing police treatment of animals need to be redefined in order that any animal who needs to be controlled is not shot and killed by a bullet but rather tranquilized and shown compassion. There are many reasons why a dog, for instance, may be upset or appear to be aggressive when they are in fact protecting an owner or are just afraid of a situation they find themselves in. Too many stories are being published lately of animals being shot by police and there is no recourse to preventing these situations from happening. The laws in this regard should be changed.
5. Hunting: This is another very controversial subject. In my opinion hunting should not be promoted as a useful sport, especially hunting for trophies. We human beings are only given so many years to live by nature. This is true for animals also. They are given even less time on this earth than humans are. What gives a human a right to take that life away prematurely? Years from now when a human life is gone, that "trophy" on the wall will have no meaning to any life that remains. This is a selfish, unnecessary sport that needs to be outlawed.
6. Dog Fighting: Another selfish "sport" that although there are laws to supposedly stop this illegal practice from happening, it continues to be a widespread "cancer" of our society. More needs to be done to find, report and jail the perpetrators of such crimes. Along with the dog fighting rings goes dog (and other animal) kidnapping which is also on the rise. People have had their beloved pet kidnapped from their own yard and disappear, and we know that many of these precious souls are unwilling subjects of horrific abuse, torture and death when they are used as bait in these illegal despicable dog fighting tragedies. There must be a better system put in place to be able to find and break up these horrible "gangs" of dog abusers.
7. Vegetarianism/Veganism: To round out my thoughts about the ethical treatment of animals in general, I believe that promoting vegetarian/vegan lifestyles is the most respectful way each individual can live their life and make a difference. Huge numbers of people in this country and around the world still have not adopted this way of life and, contrarily, "enjoy" the momentary gastronomic pleasure of consuming a dead animal. They, in turn, will eventually reap the unfortunate benefits of their consumption by finding out that they have heart disease, coronary disease, high cholesterol, medical problems, etc. This is know scientific fact which will be discussed further as my blog progresses.
In summary, the above is only the "tip of the iceberg" and many more of my thoughts will be shared in the coming months. I am grateful to those who share my opinion and hope to open the eyes of at least some of those who do not. It is not for all humans to love animals as I do but it is for all humans to treat animals with respect and not as disposable items to be thrown away like trash. A lot of trash gets recycled these days. The same cannot be said for the lives of animals that are destroyed in the above unnecessary, evil and unkind ways.
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