Stray
My wife and I volunteer for the local Humane Society. Our organization has a no-kill policy regarding their animals; they are only put down if they are suffering and cannot be saved or if they are a danger to humans and other animals.
I only mention this because I found another stray a few days ago. We've named her Brownie. She's a boxer bull mix, we think, but I've never been too good at guessing breeds. She was so hungry she ate half a box of Wheat Thins when I found her.
Every animal we own was rescued from one situation or another. Our first dog, Sassy, we discovered with a litter of puppies next to a busy street. She was so tired when we found her that she had stopped taking care of the puppies. Many of them were playing in the ditch, inches away from traffic. When I scooped them up and placed them in the car, she whined and looked anxious. Then, when I tried to grab her, she snapped at me a little, which is understandable. We've had her for over a year, and she's the most submissive and friendly dog you'll ever meet. Which only reminds me of how scared she was when I first grabbed her. Since the puppies were young and cute, we found homes for them quite easily, but she's old and somewhat less attractive, so she stayed with us.
I once climbed in a drainage pipe to rescue a cat named Pumpkin. It was Thanksgiving Break, so the water (even in Mississippi) was a bit frosty. She ran in anyway. I can't imagine how scared a cat has to be to decide that running into freezing water is better than being caught. After I caught her, she purred and purred. I think she had just about given up.
I like animals a lot more than humans. They don't complain, they always love you, and they're always thankful. More importantly, they have mastered the art of existing in a space and wanting nothing else. This is the same skill that Buddhist monks spend lifetimes to learn- the same task that can be accomplished by a turtle.
By the same vein, I despise people who abandon or hurt animals. Some of my students joke about killing cats. I cannot imagine how demented a person would have to be to find such talk amusing. Even today I met a guy who said (after I told him that I had found a cat a home today) that "I can get rid of all of them in about 30 minutes, if you want."
Bastard.
As a society, we have no excuse for domesticating an animal (the wolf), making it totally dependent on man, and then turning our backs on it. If we didn't want to take care of them, we should have left them alone in the first place. I imagine I've rescued and fostered 30 animal in the past year alone- all because someone decided to drop their pet off on the side of the road.
Sorry- soapbox speech done. I just needed to vent.
I only mention this because I found another stray a few days ago. We've named her Brownie. She's a boxer bull mix, we think, but I've never been too good at guessing breeds. She was so hungry she ate half a box of Wheat Thins when I found her.
Every animal we own was rescued from one situation or another. Our first dog, Sassy, we discovered with a litter of puppies next to a busy street. She was so tired when we found her that she had stopped taking care of the puppies. Many of them were playing in the ditch, inches away from traffic. When I scooped them up and placed them in the car, she whined and looked anxious. Then, when I tried to grab her, she snapped at me a little, which is understandable. We've had her for over a year, and she's the most submissive and friendly dog you'll ever meet. Which only reminds me of how scared she was when I first grabbed her. Since the puppies were young and cute, we found homes for them quite easily, but she's old and somewhat less attractive, so she stayed with us.
I once climbed in a drainage pipe to rescue a cat named Pumpkin. It was Thanksgiving Break, so the water (even in Mississippi) was a bit frosty. She ran in anyway. I can't imagine how scared a cat has to be to decide that running into freezing water is better than being caught. After I caught her, she purred and purred. I think she had just about given up.
I like animals a lot more than humans. They don't complain, they always love you, and they're always thankful. More importantly, they have mastered the art of existing in a space and wanting nothing else. This is the same skill that Buddhist monks spend lifetimes to learn- the same task that can be accomplished by a turtle.
By the same vein, I despise people who abandon or hurt animals. Some of my students joke about killing cats. I cannot imagine how demented a person would have to be to find such talk amusing. Even today I met a guy who said (after I told him that I had found a cat a home today) that "I can get rid of all of them in about 30 minutes, if you want."
Bastard.
As a society, we have no excuse for domesticating an animal (the wolf), making it totally dependent on man, and then turning our backs on it. If we didn't want to take care of them, we should have left them alone in the first place. I imagine I've rescued and fostered 30 animal in the past year alone- all because someone decided to drop their pet off on the side of the road.
Sorry- soapbox speech done. I just needed to vent.
posted by Yorick at 2:03 PM
3 Comments:
i'm in love :)
I have noticed you mentioned Budha in this post and in a previous post even before mentioning Jesus-I just wanted to remind you that the apostle Paul is a turtle-he said he had learned the secret of
"being content in every situation",
Of course "content" is different than "happy"..............
Do you eat meat? If not, my congratulations, at least, on your consistency. If so, I think you're being somewhat hypocritical.
I happen to believe animals have no more rights than plants, but I also believe that my children will one day find my speciesism as repugnant as I now find my parents' latent racism.
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