Your neighbor never seems to feed the poor dog chained in the backyard.
The man next door beats his dog whenever it
digs a hole in the yard or chews on the lawn furniture.
You witness a neighbor's child put his cat in a box and then kick
it around the yard. Not increasing the size of the collar as the dog or cat grows results in this type of injury,
and ultimately death if not dealt with. Starvation is not caused only by lack of food, but by improper food, untreated disease,
and parasites (like worms).
Step 2: Report
It
If you witness neglect or abuse, report it to your local humane
officer. A humane officer can be anyone in your area who investigates animal cruelty, such as the humane society's investigator
or your city's animal control officer. If the humane officer agrees that there's the possibility of neglect or abuse, he or
she will investigate. If you're worried about being blamed for meddling or about any retaliation against you, tell the humane
officer that you wish to remain anonymous. The humane officer will visit the home and determine the action needed to alleviate
the animal's suffering. Usually neglect is caused by owners not understanding their pet's needs, so humane officers spend
90% of their time explaining how to correctly care for pets. Some owners, however, neglect their pets because they simply
don't care. When confronted by a humane officer, these owners may decide to relinquish the animals rather than being bothered
with properly caring for them. If the pet is seriously unhealthy or obviously abused, the humane officer may remove the animal
to protective care while she investigates. You can help the officer by offering to alert her if the owner gets another pet.
Or if charges are brought against the owner, you can offer to testify or sign a complaint, since neglect is difficult to prove.
And in the case of violent abuse, witnesses are rare, so you may be the only person who can testify about the incident. Humane
officers try to respond quickly to a complaint, but because of the number of calls they receive daily, they can't always leave
their desk the moment you call. If you're concerned for the pet's immediate safety, tell the officer. Don't attempt to remove
a pet from a potentially abusive or neglectful environment yourself. Not only is this illegal, but you haven't stopped the
owner from getting another pet to abuse or helped turn him into a caring, responsible owner.
STEP 3: Help
preven it...
The key to preventing neglect is education. Many owners just aren't
aware of how important affection is to a pet or even that a puppy can outgrow the collar. The key to preventing abuse is stronger
anti-cruelty laws -- laws that empower effective enforcement and include harsh penalties.
Serious penalties can inhibit cruelty and, with the addition of counseling as a penalty, can stop the incidents from being
repeated by offenders. You can help prevent these cruel acts by informing others about what to do if they see such an act
or by helping them to better understand how to train and care for their pets.
To
do this you can:
Schedule a speaker from your local humane agency to talk at your church or any clubs
you belong to. Do the same for any children's groups, like scout groups, day-care centers, and schools.
Set up a brown-bag lecture series at your office, conducted by a humane agency, on
pet care, basic behavior solutions, and animal welfare issues.
Get pet care and behavior pamphlets from your humane agency to distribute to any of
your coworkers or friends with new pets.
Put together packets of treats and a pet-care book or video to give to friends who've
just gotten a new pet. Include spay/neuter information, tags, and a vaccination record book. Obedience lessons make a great
gift for a new puppy.
Support any initiatives to strengthen your state's anti-cruelty laws.
Write to your paper and TV station whenever animal cruelty stories appear. Tell them
you support strong penalties for these abusers.
Contribute to or volunteer at your local shelter, where they must deal with these
appalling situations regularly.
