Animals in Disasters

Animal cruelty is by far not the only horrible thing that happens to animals of the world, natural disasters claim many of them as well. Hurricanes, tornadoes, avalanches, fires, and floods not only affect humans in terrible ways, but in some ways even more horrible for animals, as they are helpless in these situations. They can only cry for help, but they are never first to BE helped, as people’s lives take precedence over theirs. Stranded, abandoned, and left for dead, as so evident in Hurricane Katrina, these poor animals, including dogs and cats like yours and mine, can only wait. Terrified, injured, and starved, they try to survive.

That is why organizations like the Humane Society, PETA, IFAW, ASPCA among thousand others are so important. Their focus is to save as many as possible, revive them, care for them and find them homes and reunite them with the owners. I find this incredibly heroic and touching. I think compassion is every person’s gift. For those who of us who can’t join them in rescue, we can certainly donate money to these organizations so they could continue the work of perpetuating the lives of our animal friends. MAKE A DONATION TODAY.

Photo of the Humane Society of US disaster team in rescue

Filed under: Take Action, dogs and cats, friends, humane organizations, local issues , compassion, disaster, donate, HSUS, rescue, Take Action

Puppy Mill Survivor

Jana Kohl learned the cruelty of the puppy business in Texas firsthand when she was looking to buy a puppy from an internet breeder. Horrified that such a thing exists in this world, she decided to adopt Baby, an older dog with one amputated leg and one of the survivor of a puppy mill, and subsequently went on a crusade to raise awareness of cruelty toward animals. She also wrote a book “Rare Breed Of Love: The True Story of Baby and the Mission She Inspired to Help Dogs Everywhere“

ABC News Diane Sawyer did a segment on this story.

I admire people like Jana. It’s never too late to learn something and demonstrate compassion. I wish I could write a book, travel the globe to go undercover and investigate cruelty cases. Everyone has a way of contributing, perhaps even a blog helps. But then again, it’s never enough until everyone sees that there are so much more to be done.

Filed under: Take Action, animal cruelty, dogs and cats, puppy mills , abc news, compassion, diane sawyer, puppy mills, Rare Breed of Love

Pope Speaks for Farm Animals

During his visit to the U.S. Pope Benedict XVI expressed his vision and compassion for all beings, including and particularly of farm animals. PETA has been in close communication with the Vatican about the welfare and exploitation of livestock for as early as the previous Pope. In his speech he said:

“Animals, too, are God’s creatures, and even if they do not have the same direct relation to God that man has, they are creatures of his will, creatures we must respect as companions in creation.”

Farm animals endure extreme cruelty, especially in America. As they are bred for consumption, factory farm industry workers often do not view them as living, breathing, feeling animals, and therefore treat them as objects that could be tortured, controlled, and killed without anesthesia. Cows live in stagnate positions in farms in their own filth for months and years. Their journeys to the slaughterhouse is atrocious, in assembly, with their throats cut, electrocuted, their heads bashed in order to stunned them. Often they die painfully and slowly while being butchered. Pigs live their entire lives in crates so small they cannot move and develop sores. Piglets are pulled from their mothers so early—they are castrated, branded without drugs, and also killed unmercifully. Among these are many other like veal, chickens, lambs (for wool) that suffer needlessly. It’s bad enough we eat them, the least we could do is show a little decency.

We are what we eat. The more suffering an animal endures, the higher the chance it is sick and bad for consumption. Think about it. If you must eat meat, avoid veal and go organic where animals receive kinder treatments, free of radicals and antibiotics, and have had better lives in roaming free.
For more information: visit PETA or Farm Santuary.

Filed under: animal cruelty, farm animals, humane organizations , compassion, cows, farm animals, Farm Sanctuary, livestock, meat comsumption, peta, pigs, pope