At Our Mercy

Published in Waking Up on the Planet

Wake-Up Call: At Our Mercy
by Karen M. Jones

Last week I learned about a dog in my community, a sweet-looking black and white "mutt" named Shadow, that had gotten loose from her home and subsequently endured the unimaginable. Someone tied three-year-old Shadow to the back of a four-wheel ATV and dragged her along a tar-and-chip road for about a quarter-mile. Her paws were shredded to the bone, her toenails were ripped from her front feet, and the skin was scraped away from several places on her legs. Mercifully, when her torturers paused at a rural intersection, Shadow managed to slip her collar and run to a nearby home, where the resident found her wailing and bloodied in the backyard the next morning. Cigarette burns were also found on her head. She received medical care and, miraculously, after a long period of bandaging and medication, is expected to recover. Even more miraculously, her owners say, she is still friendly and loving toward her human family and other people.

Cruelty like this makes some of us sad, some of us sick, and some just red-hot angry. The disregard for life these tormentors demonstrated is the same lack of humanity you hear in the voices of serial killers when they describe their actions. Even if you don't consider yourself an animal protector, you should be aware of the documented strong connection between animal abuse and violence against humans. We are all vulnerable to people who are capable of this kind of cruelty.

Don't just wring your hands or silently fume. Do something about it:

> Stop cruelty before it starts. If you have children, or work with them in day care or school, teach them to respect and care for animals as they do for the people they love. Don't permit tail-pulling, teasing, rough handling or hitting. Ask your school to subscribe to Kind News for kids, sponsored by the National Association for Humane and Environmental Education.

> In a 2001 Humane Society study of more than 1000 cases of animal abuse, 20% of intentional cruelty incidents were committed by teens. Of that group, 95% were males. Order the Doris Day Animal Foundation's Comics for Compassion for teenage boys. Introduce a young person to the Humane Society's Humane Teen website.

> Read and share the Humane Society's "10 Things Teens Can Do To Stop Cruelty to Animals." Order the 23-page book, "Understanding Animal Cruelty," published for teenagers by the National Association for Humane and Environmental Education. Order online, or send a check or money order for $3 (payable to NAHEE) to NAHEE, P.O. Box 362, East Haddam, CT 06423-0362.

> When it's too late for prevention, deterrence is the next defense. Current penalties for animal abuse in most states are woefully inadequate. Find out how to tell your legislators that you want stiffer penalties for animal abuse; enter "cruelty" in the Bill Finder box on the Humane Society's website.

Many people where I live are discussing what happened to Shadow; there has been an outpouring of sympathy, as well as money for medical bills and a reward for identifying the perpetrators. Whether or not you hear about them, there are many animals in your own community enduring similar fates. Do something on their behalf today. With one small action, you may be saving a loved one -- perhaps a child -- from tomorrow's abuser.

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