Today’s Forge post will be a change of pace as I hand the reins to Nick Peters’ wife Allie for a special item on animal cruelty. There’s also a companion post on the Ticker from my perspective, explaining why I’m so big on this issue. For now, here’s Allie.
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Animal cruelty and abuse is everywhere -- no matter where you go. Most people know it’s a bad thing, but I don’t think most people know quite just how bad it’s gotten. That was the case for me.
I have always had a passion for wildlife. Animals are fascinating creatures. They will not betray you. They go by instinct, and therefore, their choices they make are purely instinctual, while humans make their choices willfully. It is our job, and our duty, as human beings to care for animals.
Genesis 1:20-26 says:
20 And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” 21 So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.” 23 And there was evening, and there was morning—the fifth day.
24 And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it was so. 25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
I will warn you that the details in this article are very graphic, but it is also important for the world to know that these things actually go on.
When you think of Hawaii, what do you think of? Most likely you think it is paradise. It’s not that way for all, though. On June 15, 2010, the LCA (Last Chance for Animals) was contacted to check out a puppy mill on the island of Oahu. The mill was called “Bradley Hawaiian Puppies.” A special investigator, pretending he was looking for a job, came to the facility.
What he found was horrific. Puppies were in cages with only concrete flooring, no food or water, and animal feces all over. In what they called the “Puppy Nursery” there were dirty gloves, scissors, syringes, and medications just laying around. Clearly, the place was very unsanitary. The dead puppies were wrapped up in newspaper and thrown into the trash, and there were many severely injured and sick dogs. There were also major rodent infestations, which could cause many diseases and injuries to the dogs.
When you buy a puppy from the pet store, you are supporting puppy mills like the one above. The money goes to the puppy mill and they keep breeding puppies in poor conditions. Many times, puppy mills will breed a female dog 3-4 times a year for 10 years. When she can no longer reproduce, they often kill her in ways such as drowning.
President Obama recently signed a law that bans “crush videos.” These crush videos are literally torture videos. Most commonly, women wearing high-heeled shoes will stomp on small animals such as rabbits and kittens, alive. You can see their heads popped off and eyes on the ground that popped out of their heads. Illegal dog fighting and cock fighting happen all the time. Most people have heard of the football star Michael Vick getting involved in these. There are often dogs known as “bait dogs” that are thrown into the arena. Bait dogs are weaker dogs. Then they throw in several stronger dogs to attack it all at the same time. They watch to see how long the weaker dog can survive.
I recommend you visit here for more cases. At the Anne Arundel County Animal Control, puppies and kittens don’t stand a chance for survival. If they weigh less than 1.5 lbs, they are automatically euthanized.
If you are going to get a pet, please consider how you will take care of it, and whether you are truly willing to take care of it for the rest of its life. Also consider rescuing one, instead of buying one.
Many pets don’t get to have a second chance in having a good life. Give a pet a second chance.
