Taking on Animal Cruelty

Update: Today I received several threatening emails from a “friend” of the individual in this picture below.   When I refused to budge on taking this picture down, she resorted to name calling.  Which of course is very effective if you’re 5 years old!  The man in this picture featured this shot on his Facebook page but has got no privacy settings set up so anybody in the world can see (and use) his pictures. I was approached yesterday by another person who wanted my source for this picture as evidence to be used in a possible legal action against the SPCA.  The source I gave was the same Facebook page mentioned above however there were so many people who posted this picture to Facebook on Wednesday that I couldn’t really tell you who posted it first. But I know for sure it wasn’t me.  I got it from somebody, who got it from somebody, who got it from somebody and so on. 

My wanna be intimidators said that if this picture wasn’t removed by the end of the day I would be hearing from a lawyer. 

Well the picture stays and I’ll take my chances with the lawyer.

This is a picture of Oreo just minutes before her death.  Doesn’t she look aggressive?  Dangerous?  A threat to the public?

I got a patronizing, impersonal email from the ASPCA today. Here’s what it said:

Public Information <publicinformation@aspca.org> to cher.jewhurst@gmail.com

8:28am

Dear Friend of Animals:
Thank you for contacting the ASPCA – America’s first humane organization – regarding Oreo.   It is important that our members have a voice in what happens in our organization – your willingness to take the time to send a message is truly appreciated.   Due to the large volume of phone calls, mail and e-mails, we apologize for a generic response to your message, but please know that each and every communication is thoroughly read.
A great deal of misinformation regarding Oreo’s euthanasia has been passed around on the Internet– everything from what time Oreo was euthanized (it was 3 p.m.) to Pets Alive’s credentials (they are NOT a member of the Mayor’s Alliance).  In addition, critics have seized on Oreo’s plight as an opportunity to discredit the ASPCA—which is interesting when you consider that one of our most ardent critics, Camille Hankins, the Director of Win Animal Rights, was convicted of animal cruelty in 1995 when nearly 100 animals were found stuffed into a tiny, filthy trailer that she rented.
While we certainly think all of these issues merit rebuttal, we believe it is critical that we address the questions and concerns regarding our decision not to send Oreo to a sanctuary.
It is first vital to consider the very definition of “animal sanctuary.”   The mission of animal sanctuaries is generally to be safe havens, where the resident animals are given the opportunity to behave as naturally as possible in a protective environment.   Due to the extreme emotional and physical strain Oreo suffered, her living conditions at a sanctuary would have been anything but "natural," and her quality of life would have been poor at best.  She would have been forced to live a life of isolation with extremely limited human contact and virtually no animal contact.  For an animal that is distinguished by sophisticated social cognition and communication, such an existence could hardly be defined by the word "sanctuary."
Many groups like Pets Alive dispute that this would have been Oreo’s fate.  But how can that be anything but empty rhetoric when these groups had no access to Oreo or her evaluations?  We had our own professional behaviorists, as well as an independent veterinary behaviorist, conduct numerous evaluations, and in our experience, the findings were not consistent with sanctuary placement.  We spent five months with Oreo- day in and day out- not only evaluating her behavior—but trying to rehabilitate her.  This is central to the ASPCA’s mission.  Just since 2003, when Edwin Sayres joined the ASPCA, we have rehabilitated over 1,200 animal cruelty victims at a cost of over 5 million dollars.  Why would Oreo be any different?
The fact is… she wasn’t.  Despite the sensational nature of her injuries, she was treated with the same love and respect—and given the greatest of care and rehabilitation– that we afford all of our animals.  But at the end of the day, and more often than the animal welfare community discusses, we made the most humane decision we could.
There is no “Oreo conspiracy,” as some have claimed.  This is simply, and tragically, the case of a heartbreaking decision made all the more difficult by the ignorance and hypocrisy of a few.
Should you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to email us again.
Sincerely,
ASPCA Public Information

As expected, they do not actually address the question of why the big rush to destroy Oreo or why, despite what their own misgivings about the possible success of a sanctuary, wasn’t Oreo given at least a stay of execution in order to let her try it.  No kill means no kill. There is no unadoptable dogs and there is no dog Cesar can’t handle.  These options should have been explored before killing Oreo.

I know that she was only one dog and that millions of dogs and cats are destroyed every month due to overpopulation. I am painfully aware of these statistics and I agree, that is the big issue we need to deal with. However, the killing of Oreo, for me, symbolizes that not all animal shelters are on the same page when that No Kill phrase is thrown around.  And the ASPCA now symbolizes, for me, certain death for any dog or cat surrendered to it. 

Be warned.

Until next time.

I am going to try and get through this without becoming a blubbering fool.  I’ve been quiet here since last week because of one beautiful brown and white one year old pit bull who survived against all odds from being thrown off a 6 story building only to meet her end on Friday at the end of a euthanasia order.  Yes of course I am referring to Oreo.  By now the infamous Oreo.

I was totally convinced we could save her.  As soon as I heard on Thursday night from Deanna at For the Love of Dog Blog that the order to euthanize had been given by the NY ASPCA President Ed Sayre, I was on the move trying to get someone to intervene. I emailed everybody I could think of, I even twittered Cesar Milan who was Washington, DC at the time, Best Friends and anybody else in the animal rescue world that was listening.  Before too long on Friday morning, it was obvious that I wasn’t the only one campaigning and there was a palatable push throughout North America that quickly spread to global proportions to have Oreo turned over to a sanctuary where she could undergo further testing, training, socializing and above all, a longer time to recuperate from her 1 whole year of being brutalized by every person she ever came into contact with.  I refer to her owner of course, Fabian Henderson, who will no doubt get off with slap on the wrist when he shows up at court December 1, 2009 for sentencing on his guilty plea. 

But I also refer to her human handlers who took over from the veterinary hospital after she was treated for what must have been hundreds of broken bones from the fall. Her pain must have been excruciating and she had no way of telling these humans where she hurt except by way of lashing out at them when they tried to touch or get close.  No one can say for sure whether she was even ready to leave the hospital when she was transferred to the ASPCA shelter, no one can know if maybe something wasn’t causing her extreme pain still. 

Her fear must have been accelerated after knowing nothing but brutality at the hands of her owner, pain at the hands of those well meaning veterinary staff and now more pain and fear in an institution that is filled with barking, meowing and generally distressed animals who are also afraid, confused and possibly in pain as well.  Now she has more humans trying to “test” her for sociability, aggression, adoptability and the right to live a full and joyous life. 

I read about those tests they do to dogs to measure their aggression or sociability.  I have not read anything good about them.  Running at a dog whose life had been filled with torture to this point waving your arms and making loud noises is not a measure of Oreo’s aggression level or sociability.  It is a measure of her fear.  And believe me, she was extremely afraid.  She had every God given right to be and I’m not a dog whisperer or even an expert in dog behaviour in any way shape or form but I understand them. I know what causes them fear and I know how they react to fear.  Fight or flight, it is basic instinct and Oreo couldn’t run anywhere so what was her alternative?  Fight of course.  It’s so simple and I get so angry that all these trained specialists couldn’t see beyond their stupid accepted “board approved” tests to actually use their heart and their soul to feel what Oreo was feeling.

Oreo should have been released to a sanctuary immediately after she was deemed well enough to leave the hospital.  Brought into a quiet, loving atmosphere with people with the time and patience to help her to learn to trust again.  Shelter staff at the ASPCA don’t have the time nor the patience and as far as we know, they may not even like their jobs!  At least at a sanctuary there is little question of the devotion of the staff and the proprietors.  There’s certainly no money making schemes going on because sanctuaries are inherently desperate for cash. No, they do it for love and that’s exactly where Oreo needed to be.  So what if she was isolated from the main population for awhile while staff gave her a chance to get used to people she can trust.  So what if it took years to bring that trust level up to a point that she could be included in the main population.  Imagine the joy and celebration though if Oreo would have been given that chance. I can see the headlines now.  MIRACLE DOG FINDS NEW TRUST, LOVE and FOREVER HOME!  I would have wept with joy.

Instead at 3:00PM eastern time on Friday afternoon, I wept with grief.  Oreo was gone. The ASPCA refused to answer their phones, refused to acknowledge emails, refused dozens of requests from sanctuaries willing to take her and waive liability.  One sanctuary in particular, Pets Alive, actually sent someone to the ASPCA shelter to see if they could pull Oreo and were unceremoniously removed from the building by security.  I also heard that the Rescue Ink boys showed up as well but I have no verification of that.  Didn’t matter if God herself showed up apparently, Sayre was not backing down from his inappropriate decision to euthanize Oreo and that, as they say, was that.

I will include a list of links at the end of this post that I would recommend you read if you want to know more about what happened, who make it happened and what’s been said about it since it happened.  But my questions are these:

1. Why was Sayre in such a damn hurry to kill this dog?  What was the rush?  Another 24 hours would have made no difference.  Another 24 hours would allowed him to visit Pets Alive (which is just outside of New York City) and inspect the place to ensure that Oreo would be well provided for. 

2. Why did Sayre even issue the press release the night before? He knew of course and actually stated so in his press release that this news was going to cause a huge backlash on the ASPCA?  That they would get email and telephone calls.  Why issue the press release when he could have just done the deed on the Friday and not announced anything until after it was done. Or not at all.  Did he draw all this negative attention to the ASPCA deliberately?  Why? It wasn’t to bring in sympathy donations I hope, because from what I’ve seen and heard, the exact opposite has been true since the news broke.  Thousands of people have withdrawn support and I even read tonight where one person changed their will yesterday to take the ASPCA out of their estate. 

3. Why wouldn’t Sayre answer his phone on Friday and changed his voice mail to dial 0 to reach reception? (Who simply hung up on all calls about Oreo by the way.)  This agency is funded by people.  Sayre’s 500K a year job is paid for by people. People were calling him and he refused to take their calls. If I refuse to take a call from those who are paying my salary, my ass is grass!  Just like that!

4. Where is the documentation from these so called “59 sessions of 45 mins. each” that resulted in Oreo being judged too aggressive to be rehabilitated?  I want to see them. I want to hear from the so called “experts” that were supposedly called in.

5. And finally, remember if you will, that it was this very same ASPCA who said that Michael Vick’s fighting dogs all needed to be destroyed.  That there was no way to rehabilitate them and that they could never be adopted to normal families?  What say you to that, Ed Sayre?  Is that why you destroyed Oreo? In revenge for Best Friends, Bad Rap and other sanctuaries who proved you so wrong about the Vick dogs? 

I am a cynic I know but I can’t help but wonder if Oreo wasn’t used as a “take that” kind of gesture from an egomaniac who didn’t like being proven wrong.  That would explain the press release the night before, the deliberate attempt to stir up the public and draw attention to who…?  Ed Sayre of course and it would explain the big rush to destroy Oreo before anyone with any clout could intervene or interfere with the big Boss Man’s spotlight.  I wouldn’t be surprised to find Sayre’s name in the top 10 at Google Trends. That’s how much “free” publicity he’s received since this whole drama began late last week.

I’m just saying is all…

Meanwhile my poor heart aches for the life that Oreo should have had and was robbed of.  Her original abuser will not get what he deserves because courts don’t have the power yet to throw any kind of justice at assholes who beat on defenceless animals.  I am planning on doing everything in my power to bring pressure on the ADA and the judge on this case but it will probably be futile. If the law isn’t there to begin with, there’s little the courts can do about it. The best guess is that he will get 5 years probation and a 5 year ban on owning animals.  BIG F___G DEAL! I will be providing names and addresses in an upcoming post about that so make sure you’re subscribed to my RSS feed so you know when that happens.

Here then are the links I mentioned that I suggest you read (including comments if it’s another blog) if you want to know more about what happened to Oreo and why?

Links:

Failing Oreo

On Oreo, Mabel, and Killing Abused Animals

The meaning of Oreo (excellent article not to be missed)

Despite pleas, Oreo is Euthanized by the ASPCA

And: More Press on the Destruction of Oreo (Thank You to Pets Alive for compiling this list)

All of our efforts to save Oreo failed.  But we cannot forget her. No, we must never forget Oreo.  Because she is now the symbol of dogs and cats all over the world who are being failed by the national humane societies, SPCA’S and the courts in providing a safe haven against harm for these dear ones who cannot speak for themselves.  We must pick up our tissues, wipe our eyes and carry on with the good fight to ensure that laws are passed AND enforced that will, once and for all, protect our four legged brothers and sisters and ensure that each and every one of them is given a chance at a joyful and humane existence.  And Big Shots like Ed Sayre who have no compassion, think only of press, money and their own ego requirements need to be removed from a place where they make decision like this asshole did last week. 

Add your name to the growing petition to demand Ed Sayre resign or be removed from his position as President of the NYC ASPCA

DEMAND RESIGNATION OF ASPCA PRES. ED SAYRE

Until next time…

Animal abuse in Victoria area up 25 per cent

SPCA officials hope more complaints translate to less tolerance from public

By Judith Lavoie, Times Colonist November 10, 2009

My note: As a follow up to my previous post regarding Block Watch for Animal Cruelty, this article seems to give proof to the fact that more people are watching and are aware of cases of animal abuse, cruelty and neglect. Of concern to me is the number of people who are willing to report cases of animal cruelty but are not willing to bear witness in a courtroom.  If we don’t follow through, we have nothing at all to complain about when these idiots are let loose again and are free to continue their heinous acts on defenceless animals.  

The story:

Cruelty investigations at Victoria SPCA are up more than 25 per cent from last year, and animal protection staff are questioning why more people are abusing their pets.

"I don’t think it’s the economy because many of the people we are dealing with are already at the bottom of the economic scale, so it’s not likely they have lost mega-investment money," said animal protection officer Erika Paul.

Paul and animal welfare officer Lynsay Bailey are hoping the upswing is due to growing public awareness and, in a city that has an animal-loving reputation, a mounting distaste for animal cruelty — meaning more cases are reported.

"A lot of the cases now are blatant neglect or abuse. I am hoping the numbers are going up because attitudes are changing and people are realizing pets are not lawn ornaments," Paul said.

But with 400 cases investigated so far this year, some of which have left Paul and Bailey shaking their heads in disbelief, it is sometimes hard to think positive.

Among the more distressing cases is an investigation into a man alleged to have hanged a horse on a Saanich Peninsula property.

Other investigations are complicated by drugs or alcohol.

"We’ve just had one addicted person where we had to get her to promise to use the toilet because the dog was eating her poo," Paul said.

"I’m not sure whether that constitutes causing distress to the dog or not."

It is frustrating that, even when concerned citizens call the SPCA, they are often reluctant to come forward as witnesses.

"People have pertinent information, but they won’t hand it to us," Bailey said.

"People just want us to go in and get the animal, but they don’t want to get involved. Often, charges can’t go through without witnesses," she said.

An example is a man who flung his dog onto a garbage can on Douglas Street this summer.

Passersby called both police and Victoria Animal Control. The man is clearly caught on surveillance cameras, but no witnesses have come forward.

Among those charged under the provincial Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, scheduled to go to court this month, are a Sooke couple who allegedly ignored their dog’s medical condition after being told she needed corrective surgery to stop her eyelashes from rubbing ulcers on her corneas. The man and woman will appear in court Nov. 19.

A Victoria woman is to appear Thursday after allegedly pushing glue traps onto her nine-week-old kitten’s paws and then ripping off the traps to discipline the kitten.

A warrant has been issued for another Victoria woman who abandoned her rental home and left two budgies in a cage. One was found alive and the other died. A post-mortem confirmed starvation was probably the cause of death.

jlavoie@tc.canwest.com

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist

“A Minneapolis woman who had 30 Shih Tzus confiscated from her home last week has been charged with animal cruelty for her back-yard breeding business.

Loretta Mae Roach, 74, was charged by the Minneapolis city attorney’s office with cruelty to animals and obstructing the legal process, both misdemeanors, after Minneapolis police and Animal Care and Control officers searched her home at 2958 Logan Av. N. on Oct. 20. Authorities were responding to complaints from neighbors who were concerned about the animals’ welfare.” Full Story

An excellent example of neighbors keeping their eyes opened for incidents of animal cruelty.  7 of these poor dogs had to be euthanized due to chronic illness but the good news is that the rest of them have either been adopted to good homes or are on their way to rescue organizations.  One dog had a broken jaw in two places and the rest of them were swimming in feces, eye diseases and every other affliction that is typical of puppy mill victims.

This woman was 74 years old and obviously totally incapable of either providing these dogs with proper care or asking for a hand from anybody.  Back-yard breeders should be illegal because I’ve yet to see a case where the dogs are provided with healthy living conditions nor is there proper licensing and regulation in place to make sure minimum guidelines are met.  It’s these types of breeders that provide those cute little puppies to the unconscionable pet stores who turn around and sell them to buyers with lots of money but little sense or knowledge of what they’re funding.

So kudos to the neighborhood in Minneapolis who had the good sense to see that something was wrong and to report it.  Would that there were more neighbors like these.

We need help in identifying the cowards who are responsible for this pit bull’s miserable life and tragic ending.  I am so sick and tired of dog fighters.  I want to put every single one of them in a man-sized cage with another dog fighter and let them fight to the death. Something right out of a Mad Max movie I know but it would be only fitting, don’t you think.

Here’s the story from Pet-Abuse.com:

Police and animal control officers are investigating a gruesome case of dog fighting, after a pit bull was severely injured and left for dead on the northwest side of Indianapolis on Friday.

A man and woman found the dog limping toward their car near the intersection of 71st St. and Guion Rd. When they stepped out of the car they noticed the dog was suffering from multiple puncture wounds and bleeding heavily. They then wrapped it up in a sleeping bag and rushed it to the local Humane Society of Indianapolis.

”You want to think the best of people," said Nina Gaither, who works with the Humane Society and serves on the board of the Indy Pit Crew, an advocacy group for the breed. "You want to think that maybe this was an accident."

As a proud pit bull owner, Gaither says her heart sank when the dog named "Valor" came into the Humane Society Friday night. "This is probably the worst it would get for a dog to come in the doors alive," Gaither said.

Unfortunately, Gaither said, the pit bull didn’t live for long. Humane officers were forced to euthanize "Valor" after finding two severely broken legs, one which would have required amputation, along with more than 50 puncture wounds. Gaither says they quickly identified "Valor" as a victim of dog fighting, because his injuries were located on the front of his body, and his wounds were inflicted over a long period of time.

"There were wounds from 4-5 days ago," Gaither said. "There were wounds from three weeks ago. There were wounds from 6 months ago from the varying degrees of healing. That’s when we realized this was nothing new for this dog."

Gaither says illegal dog fighting isn’t a new problem in our area. The Pit Crew created an educational video in hopes of shedding light on the practice two years ago. The Humane Society receives dogs rescued from fights once every couple months. But Gaither says this latest case shows how previous efforts haven’t been able to target the underlying problem.

"I’m just reminded that this is a human problem," Gaither said. "This isn’t a dog problem."

Though it’s unclear exactly how widespread dog fighting has become in Indiana, in the past few months IMPD has joined forces with animal control to crack down on that human problem. The new task force investigates animal fighting complaints and handles cases like "Valor’s".
"The only thing that ever happened to this dog that was humane was the peaceful end he was given," Gaither said.

Now she says she hopes the increased effort brings justice to what she calls a cowardly act.

"The whole manner about it makes them a coward," Gaither said. "The fact that they are engaged in this practice. The fact that they would just dump a dog, you know, out on the street to fend for itself and for the rest of the community to deal with."

If you have any tips regarding this case or any other cases of dog fighting, please call CrimeStoppers at 262-TIPS.

The BAD RAP blog turned me onto an article tonight that appeared as a special contribution in the SF Chronicle Online.  Those of us who have been following the Michael Vick story from the beginning have been hearing a lot of “let it go” and “he did his time, let’s move on” sort of thing from football fans and/or Vick fans lately.  We who have seen the pictures of what he did to dogs and heard the truth of the torture and killing that Michael Vick participated in personally at Bad Newz Kennels have a wee bit of trouble moving on, let alone forgiving this killer for what he did to defenceless dogs.  Over and over again we point out that Michael Vick did NOT do time for animal cruelty and in fact, plead not guilty to that charge which was later dropped in plea bargain.  He did 18 short months of jail time for funding a dog fighting ring. 

Since his release from jail, none of us watching have seen anything even remotely like remorse from this man and his interviews, particularly the one he did for 60 Minutes, never include any acceptance of responsibility.  “I let it happen” he says or “I should have put a stop to it”. 

So when he received a very cool reception last week when the Eagles played the Raiders in Oakland, I was very happy to hear and read about it.  I pray the cool receptions continue to the point that the Eagles will reconsider about whether giving this man millions of dollars to be an average football player and a despised team member was a good idea.

Reading this article tonight was extremely heartening and put into elegant prose what all of us feel that think Michael Vick hasn’t come anywhere close to paying penance for what he did to those poor dogs.  I hadn’t actually read about the swimming pool before tonight and I too will be haunted now forever with that heartbreaking vision in my mind. 

Burn in hell, Michael Vick.  Even that is too good for a dog killer like you.

Read the article here – It’s really very good.

Thank you so much, Christie Keith, for writing this.  783 comments means that a ton of people are finally reading the truth about what Vick really did and didn’t do time for.

Here are some disturbing updates to previously covered cases:

Remember Liz Carlisle, the 20 year old who was charged with first degree animal cruelty for drowning two rabbits at a pet store and putting the picture of her smiling with those rabbits up on Facebook for all to see?  Today it was reported that the charges against her could be reduced. Here’s the report:

By Katie Byard, Beacon Journal staff writer

“Animal-cruelty charges against a former pet-store worker accused of drowning two injured rabbits could be lowered. Ron Gatts, attorney for Liz Carlisle, 20, of Ravenna, said he expects a change from first-degree to second-degree misdemeanors. Gatts said the first-degree charges, which each carry up to a six-month sentence, assume the animals were ”companion animals” in a ”residential setting.” The rabbits were not, he said.

Second-degree charges each carry a maximum 90-day jail sentence. Gatts said the change would not be a plea deal, but rather a recognition that wrong charges had been filed. On Thursday, Akron Municipal Judge Stephen Fallis scheduled a jury trail for 8:30 a.m. Dec. 15. A pre-trial is set for 9 a.m. Dec. 10.”

So by the unfortunate circumstance that these rabbits were in a pet store destined to be sold to a customer as “companion animals”, this moron is going to receive a slap on the wrist for her cruel and callous treatment of these defenceless animals. Where’s the deterrent?  What this law says then is that as long as the animals are not in a residential setting, animal cruelty charges cannot be brought against idiots who think drowning rabbits as a means of euthanasia is okay.   Frankly, the 6 month sentence for first degree charges is laughable because you just know that anyone convicted wouldn’t actually receive that sentence.  What a joke animal cruelty laws are if the best you can do is 6 months for first degree.

Or how about the case of Robert Suttles who poisoned his poor dog Bowser with an anti-freeze sandwich by forcing the dog to swallow while holding his jaws shut.  You remember this one surely. Who could forget the vision of that poor animal suffering for days before the moron finally came out and apparently impatient that the dog hadn’t died yet, proceeded to kick the dog to death.  Or at least we hope the dog was dead because the asshole then threw the dog into a fire barrel and burned him. 

Guess what? He got off too.  Apparently the DA dropped the ball on filing the indictment and so the case was dismissed. This is yet another example of vigilante justice being warranted.  I wonder how this hillbilly would feel with a poisonous sandwich stuffed down his redneck throat?

Full story of dismissal here

Let’s not forget either those wonderful celebrities who seem to think that whatever they have to say is worth listening to.  Chris Rock appears on the Jay Leno show and they discuss how outrageous it is that Michael Vick did actual time for dog fighting.  Here’s the story:

Rock’s Dog-Fighting Comments Cost Him Pryor Role?

Good for Mrs. Pryor for outing Rock as an ignorant asshole but I think he may be too stupid to really care.  I’ve never liked him, I always thought his so-called humor was desperate and swampy but now I  have a great reason besides that to despise him. I never like Leno either but now I leave the room when hubby puts the show on.  Combined these two are about as funny as a fart in church.

Some days I truly despair that our animal brothers and sisters will ever be treated fairly and humanely.  I’ve had several crying episodes this past week about animal cruelty including a video from SHARK about bull fighting that I could not bring myself to watch entirely.  This is the first time I have thrown my hands to my eyes and said “NO, I just can’t watch this!”. Usually I force myself to watch no matter how painful it is. But that video just went beyond what even I could take.  If you’ve seen it, you know what I mean. If you dare: BullfightBloodbath.com 

So it’s been a difficult week as you can imagine.  However, my mentor Ellie Drake, the founder of Braveheart Women of which I am a Core Member said something on our mentoring call last week that really made me stop and think. She said that pain is a part of life.  There is no way to avoid it and that we will always have to face pain in some shape or form as long as we are alive.  However, she said, suffering is a choice. We can choose to either suffer for our pain or learn from it and grow.  

If cases of animal cruelty hurt me, then it is that pain that causes me to be so passionate about abolishing animal cruelty.  Instead of suffering from that pain, I need to take that energy and apply it to the fight for justice.  Thanks Ellie. I truly needed to hear that at exactly the moment that you said it.   

Anyway, I think that’s enough bad news for today, don’t you?  Your comments are always welcomed and I enjoy reading them so please feel free to leave your thoughts. I will be back posting regularly I hope unless the old man comes up with something for else for me to do for him. 

Be well and be good to your 4 legged family.  

Apologies to you who look forward to reading my posts more regularly as I’ve been somewhat distracted this past week helping my hubby get a site up and running.  It doesn’t mean I haven’t been keeping up on the news and ranting loudly to anyone who will listen about some of the rotten things that have gone on recently in the animal cruelty world.  Oh hell, I’ll rant even you won’t listen.

So here now is the first of the stories that rotted my socks this past week:

Antonio Ray of Ardmore, Oklahoma was arrested last March after officials say he was seen dragging his pit bull behind him while riding his bike down a residential road.  This bonehead, it is reported, decided that his beautiful red pit bull was becoming too much of a bother so he was apparently bringing him into the SPCA.  Instead of the normal way of turning a dog over, you know like putting the dog in a crate and in the backseat of a car and drive the dog to the pound, this asshole decided to tie his dog up to the back of his bike on a short leash.  He must have ridden that bike as fast as he possibly could because he dragged that poor dog for over a 1/4 mile.  He claims he didn’t know the dog was dragging and thought he was running along behind.  Yeah right!  I don’t own a pit bull (unfortunately for me) but I’ve heard from others who do that if you’re hooked up to a pit bull on your bike and that dog digs his paws in, there’s no way you’re not going to know it.  These are big strong dogs.

The news story includes a video that shows pictures of this poor dog who died before he could receive medical attention. The pictures show that all four of his paws were shredded off and his chest & head also received extensive trauma.  Poor puppy. These animals are so loyal and committed to making their owners happy to have been tortured this way before dying just really busts me up.  It provokes in me a need to commit violence to the person who could do this to one of this precious dogs. 

Ray’s day in court was last week and he was acquitted of all charges.  His attorneys won the case by claiming that Ray did not know the dog was being dragged behind him and apparently this was enough of a shadow of a doubt for the jury to acquit.  There are stories that the jury took such a disliking to the judge that they acquitted out of spite.  More stories say that some of the jury members slept while the case was being presented. Either way, it is my opinion that the jury must have been 12  of the biggest idiots to hold driver’s licenses in Ardmore.  How this case could be anything other then a guilty verdict is completely beyond me.  My mouth dropped to the floor when I read the news. 

And I still can’t help but feel such sorrow and grief for the dog who was tortured so painfully prior to dying.  It just makes me cry.

Full story: Defendant found not guilty in Ardmore animal cruelty trial

This is why! Need I say more?

Picture from: I’m Tired Online – Daily Smile

So there’s a story out today that is being blogged about on a couple of less then respectable blogs that seem to think moronic statements are funny and will get readership. But then of course they do increase readership because as I’ve come to believe, many human beings are morons and like flies to shit, morons flock together.

The story is that a rural town in New Zealand has been forced to cancel it’s annual “dead rabbit throwing” contest that usually precedes their annual pig hunt.  Now this is so wrong on so many levels that it boggles my mind.  Because, you see, these are children who participate in this  contest and who are encouraged to treat dead animals like toys.  I’m not even going to broach the subject of the pig hunt itself.

Here is the gist of the story:

“A rural town in New Zealand has been forced to cancel its annual rabbit-throwing competition after complaints from animal rights groups. In the contest, which is held each year to coincide with the start of the pig hunt, children see how far they can throw a dead rabbit.  But the RSPCA said the rabbit-throw sent a message to children that dead animals were fun and could legitimately be used as a form of entertainment.

Charles Cadwallader, animal cruelty inspector, said the rabbit-throw was also cruel. "Do you throw your dead grandmother around for a joke at her funeral?" he said.”

Now let me be perfectly clear about why I’m so pissed about this tonight.  It’s not the story.  I think the story is great, good for the animal rights groups who protested this annual event and good for the inspector who shut the event down.  And especially good for the rabbits.

End of story right?

Wrong.  In following the links in my Google alerts regarding animal cruelty I encountered this story on not one, but two different blogs.  I read the author’s post and then I made the mistake of reading the comments.  And that, my dear readers, is what pissed me off.

I am absolutely mystified on how many real honest-to-god jerks there are in this world. Not only did they have a great time tossing around the idea of “throwing your dead grandmother around at her funeral” but a majority of them were ticked off because after all, these are dead rabbits! “If they’re dead, how can it be cruel?”  And “this is political correctness gone mad”. It’s only rabbits, after all.

Nobody stops to wonder how the rabbits became dead.  And what the hell are you teaching children when you encourage them to fling dead animals as far as they can for fun?

I shake my head in complete discouragement some days.  Human beings are so undeserving of being at the top of the food chain. It is my sincere hope that someday, aliens will land on the planet who are bigger, tougher and more cold-hearted then humans.  And these aliens, who will have a taste for human flesh, will derive great pleasure from torturing their food before they eat it.  And who knows, maybe they too will have a game for their children that includes throwing dead humans as far as they can for prizes and bragging rights.

I can only pray…