The animal awareness thread

I can't watch the videos and even reading stuff like this just makes me so emotional...if I had a ranch I would have so many animals...

 

You me, and my BFF. That's all we talk about...if we won the lottery.. animal sanctuaries. Not jettsetting, living it up - but saving animals.

That's why I love the Simpson's creator... what he's selflessly doing in his dying time -- saving animals lives.
My frikkin hero.

 

I seriously cant understand how a person could be that evil and sick. As a huge dog person, it is very hard to read such reports. I look at the dog in that picture and I see the face of my own husky "Bandit" below.

IMO dogs/horses, pets in general, are proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy....

 

Count me in. Building an animal shelter would be :heart:
If I have any money to give at the end of my days, I will definitely put PETA or a similar organisation in my will.

 

Thank you for the kind words Bliss, right back atcha! (and thanks for the tinypic tip). Speaking of advocating for animals, I came home this past Saturday night from a business trip and my daughter led me out to our pasture to see the beautiful mare below! It seems my wife and daughter went to the auction earlier that day and outbid the slaughterhouse buyers for this thoroughbred.

The bastard owners were willing to dump her at the auction because she "only" made $21,000 in winnings last year, not enough to recoup their investment so they sentenced her to a death sentence rather than keep paying for her upkeep. For only $260 my amazing wife and daughter (she insisted on kicking in $17 from her allowance) saved her from the slaughterhouse. According to her the slaughterhouse buyers were VERY angry at my wife and daughter and had a few snide comments for them on the way out. My wife is not someone you want to piss off (especially about horses) and responded with some comments of her own, lol.

You can tell from the pic that she is underweight and is still a little skittish around men (probably due to abuse/neglect). She is very gentle and still has a lot of get up and go, my wife and daughter will be re-training her to be a trail and show horse.

Not sure if we will keep her or give her to another girl in our horse club (about of third of them are sharing horses), but for now she has a safe home and I'm sure my wife will get her retrained and back at a healthy weight asap.

 

Fantastic! There are a few horse rescues here in Colorado and I love that they basically bring these horses back to life so that they are adoptable ...that will be one lucky girl at the horse club...I'm certain her horse will be happy to find some peppermints in her pocket...what have you named her

 

Her racing name was Renegade a go-go, I think we will just stick with Renegade, lol.

 

:smt057

 

What to Do if You See a Dog Chained Up in Freezing Temperatures

For animal lovers, seeing a dog tied up outside elicits a visceral response. Many times the chain is meant as a dog sitter, a way to get the dog out of its owner’s hair. The dog is stuck and if the owner is not paying attention, the dog could get tangled up and severely — or fatally — injure themselves.

The situation becomes even worse when the dog is left out in freezing conditions. A dog’s fur coat can only go so far, with shorter-hared dogs like chihuahuas and Jack Russell terriers succumbing to the cold quicker than heavy-coated dogs like Siberian Huskies or Alaskan Malamutes. In fact, a dog like the Jack Russell Terrier may start to shiver if it is left out for too long in weather that is below 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Even leaving your dog in the car during these temperatures is considered neglect. A car cools down as quickly as it warms up, so if you are gone for more than 10 minutes, a dog will start suffering from the cold.

Just like us, dogs can fall victim to hypothermia or frostbite if left out in the cold for too long. The areas that are at a danger for frostbite in dogs are ears, tail tip, nose and feet. A general rule to follow in cold temperatures is “If it’s too cold for us, it’s too cold for our dogs.”

So what do you do when you see a dog chained up in freezing temperatures? Any dog lover will tell you they have to do something. And they should do something, because it’s a matter of life and death for that dog, not even considering the fact that the dog is already suffering in freezing weather.

The first thing you should do is write down all you can about the situation: the time, the temperature, the home’s address, the type of dog. Write down as much information as you can and if you have a device available, take photos or video of what you see as evidence.

Next, call someone who can help. The Humane Society recommends contacting local law enforcement agencies or animal control first. Because the dog is at risk of hypothermia, frostbite and death, the owner could face criminal charges, which would save more animals from being abused. It is also important that you take notes from the call as well. Get the name of the person you spoke to, the time and length of the call.

As much as you want to help, it is important that you let the authorities handle the situation. By taking it into your own hands, you put yourself at risk. You can, however, monitor the location over the next few days to see if the situation has gotten better or still remains the same. If it has not gotten better, follow up with the person you spoke to and report it again.

It is always safe to be prepared to help an animal. The last thing you want to see is a suffering animal, but the more prepared you are to help, the better that animal’s life can be. The best way to be prepared is to program the phone numbers of your local law enforcement, animal control and humane society into your phone. That way you can alert someone of the neglect as quickly as possible.

 

In awe. :freehug: Your family saved her life. She has to KNOW it.


My added opinion -- you should consider sharing this beautiful story on FB...I would love to share it too, (names redacted and privacy ensured, of course). People love and are inspired by rescue stories :heart:

 

True

 

Unique, I have a FB friend who is involved in a number of rescue organizations where she lives and follows others as do I. She often posts the most heartbreaking stories. I'm afraid to look at her posts half the time. One recently was about a dog that froze to death chained outside.

My favorite rescue I follow is Hope For Paws. The vids of their rescues make me cry but warm my heart, too. I'd love to be able to volunteer at our local SPCA but I couldn't handle it, emotionally. I'd want to rescue all the animals.

 

Such an important reminder. I recall Lippy stating that in Denver it's a $100 or $300 fine. I actually recently read an article that it's now a $100 fine in Philly...

....However, while looking for it to post here, I could NOT find it, but instead found this... very disappointed in my State (though props to STL's Mayor! )

http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/...-to-remain-outside-in-frigid-weather.html?c=r

 

They do not mess around here...$1000.00 fine...my neighbor doesn't dare leave his dog outside ...I will steal him and take him in the house

 

Holy crap $1000?? :smt103 Effing LOVE Denver!! :freehug:

Ha, I would do the same....when it comes to doggies, me and my bff don't play..

 

Hey ladies, speaking of animal sanctuaries....
I ran across this petition to save a sanctuary (horses, cattle, bunnies...)

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/120/056/273/help-save-our-sanctuary/



At Hopefield Animal Sanctuary we look after over 300 sick, unwanted and mistreated animals - including horses, cattle and rabbits. The land that the sanctuary is on is owned by Tescos and they want to sell it to housing developers. If this goes ahead the sanctuary will need to close, leaving the animals with nowhere to live. Many of the animals are too old to be adopted by members of the public, so it will mean a death sentence for the animals!

There are other areas being considered by the council for housing development, so it isn't essential that our sanctuary land is used.

We have spent the last three years developing our stables. We have put so much money in and now everything could be lost.

We provide a service not just for the animals but also for the public - we have school visits and children with learning difficulties come to see the animals.

We could try to rehome a few animals but a lot are too old and we would have to put them to sleep. We have also got cattle and as we are not a big cattle community in Essex there isn't anywhere else for the animals to go.

Please sign my petition to ask Brentwood Council to reclassify the land as a leisure and recreation area, which would reduce the value of the land, giving Hopefield Animal Sanctuary a chance to buy it, in order to save the animals.

 

I'd be broke!

 

With the way you pass around that collection plate? Never!

 

:smt018 Bring that puppy dog inside when it's cold!