Editorial

Editorial

Cruel and inhumane

It’s like an annual spring ritual: complaints of animals being dumped along the roads in remote areas of the county.

To most people, the idea of taking an unwanted pet and just putting it out along the road must seem incomprehensible. But, judging from the number of people who report such incidents, the practice must be more common than anyone would like to believe.

To any human being with an ounce of compassion, the practice is cruel, callous and beneath contempt. A puppy or kitten has no chance of survival when left in the wild ~ without its mother or siblings ~ and even an adult pet used to being fed and cared for by its owners has only a faint glimmer of a chance.

There are organizations which may be able to find homes for animals which are no longer wanted -- people who find themselves in that situation should use that resource.

But, the solution to the problem is responsible pet ownership. The acquisition of a pet should not be a spur-ofthe-moment decision; based on that cute little puppy or kitten. Pets, like children, grow into adulthood — and if you’re not willing to care for them for life, you shouldn’t get them in the first place.

If you decide to get a pet, please, have it neutered or spayed. There are enough cats and dogs roaming wild already, without your household pet running at night and contributing to the problem.

And lastly, anyone with knowledge of a person mistreating or abandoning animals should report it to the Sheriffs Department or animal warden. There are laws against such practices, and swift prosecution of such criminals would likely deter others.

Dogs, cats and other household pets are loving creatures, whose only flaw might be their unfailing devotion to their owners. They depend oh us - is it really fair, or humane - to let them down?