A pet-positive editorial in the Chicago Tribune
I don't always agree with the Trib's editorials, but I'd like to have this one framed. :)
Editorial
Hounds, horses and heroes
November 8, 2007
Moved by the plight of countless pets left homeless by Hurricane Katrina, thousands of Americans found room in their hearts for a dog or cat (or two) they didn't know they wanted. Animal rescue groups descended on storm-ravaged New Orleans to round up abandoned pets and farmed them out to shelters all over the country. Families scrambled to adopt the orphaned dogs and cats, providing a warm-and-fuzzy sidebar to an otherwise tragic story.
We were reminded of the Katrina pets when we read about the heroics of dozens of horse lovers and veterinarians who worked to save 59 Belgian draft horses involved in a highway crash in Lake County last month. Crammed into a trailer much too small for its cargo, the frightened horses kicked violently as their rescuers tried to remove them from the overturned carrier. Seventeen died or had to be euthanized, but the rest have been cared for by volunteers, many of whom now hope to adopt one.
We thought about the Katrina animals again when we read about the 700 volunteers who have been caring for hundreds of dogs, cats and birds housed in a hangar at the DeKalb airport after being seized from the rural farmhouse where they'd lived in squalor. Their owner, is accused of hoarding and neglecting the animals. Rescuers expect most of the animals will be adopted.
There's nothing like a high-profile calamity to bring out the best in people, and God bless them all for rising to the occasion. But we'd like to register a gentle reminder that there are millions more animals in need of homes, most of them victims of their own private tragedies. Pets are surrendered every day because their families fall on hard times, their aging owners move to nursing homes or their young playmates develop allergies. Some are abandoned by owners who didn't want them in the first place, including litters of puppies or kittens dumped by people who can't be bothered to spay their pets. Most of these animals don't make headlines, but their plight is just as desperate.
Yet in the aftermath of Katrina, many shelters reported a disheartening phenomenon: Plenty of callers who were looking for hurricane orphans refused to even consider adopting, say, a Dumpster dog found behind the local Wal-Mart. If it didn't come with a made-for-Hollywood story -- "Brangelina Meets Bowser"? -- then never mind. We feel sorry for those people.
The silver lining in any disaster is that people are inspired to write a happy ending. That's especially true if it makes the nightly news. But if you think there's room in your heart and home for a four-legged friend, don't wait for fate to write the script. Go to your local shelter and save someone's life. The first time you feel that cold, wet nose against your cheek just before the alarm clock goes off, you'll know you're a hero.
