At risk of being accused of posting the “lamest post evah”….
I’ve been volunteering for the past few weeks at the Atlanta Humane Society. It’s honestly been one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve ever had – and I’ve done a lot in life. My first surprise when I started was how immaculately clean the place had to be. You can’t do anything there without sanitizing afterwards. Unlike a lot of people who volunteer and gravitate to the puppy kennel, I prefer the adult dog kennel. It’s like an orphanage, I suspect. People who come to adopt come for the puppies. The adult dog kennel is never busy. And it’s a shame really. When you adopt an adult dog, you’re getting a dog you don’t have to worry about. It already knows not to piss and shit on your floor.
Today was amazing. I was doing my rounds in the kennel – I usually go from pen to pen and just give the dogs a bit of attention. If the dog has pooped, I’ll clean it up (rule #1: No dog should have to go for more than 5 minutes with a mess in its cage.) If the dog needs water, I’ll do that. But mostly, I just spend five minutes with each dog, scratching its ears, playing, whatever. Today, a dog really had an impact on me. It was a small hound (think Bassett, but all yellow.) She was baying and baying and, frankly, getting on everyone’s nerves. I stopped at her pen and went inside. She immediately nuzzled right into me as though she was a puppy doing the same thing to her mother (she’s 4.) When I put my arms around her, she was shaking a lot. I stayed with her for about 15 minutes – just paying attention to her and letting her know someone was there.
For the rest of the afternoon, she didn’t make a sound.
The Atlanta Humane Society is an amazing place. Basically, I clean up poop all day and make sure things are immaculately clean – and I LOVE every minute of it. When I get home at dinner time, I smell like bleach! The best part is that you know you are doing something wonderful for animals that were unwanted by someone.
I’m so impressed with how incredibly well-run the place is. Seriously, you could (almost) eat off the floors. You handle one dog – you sanitize before you touch another. You work in the clinic with sick animals? You can’t touch puppies available for adoption. Everything is done to maximize the safety of the animals – whether they’re dogs, cats, rabbits, gerbils, or whatever.
The only bad part is coming home at the end of the day. Charlotte (my Labrador) completely shuns me after she smells the dogs I’ve been playing with all day.
capelza
Michael…I am always moved by kindness and tenderness and people who actually do something about it. I send my money to humane socities and ASPCA, but I don’t have the strength to actually go wok at a shelter. It breaks my heart to see the homeless animals, like you say, adult dogs. Kudos to you.
I adopted the muttly I have when he was a few years old and all my cats have been rescue cats.
Happy Easter, Spring, Passover..take your pick!
p.lukasiak
(((((((((((((Michael D))))))))))))))
Tax Analyst
That’s a very kind thing to do, Michael. I donate to the local SPCA, but I don’t have the fortitude to do the volunteer work.
empty
Kudos to you Michael. To do something to reduce the suffering of sentient beings is truly wonderful. Thanks for sharing.
Gemina13
Michael, that’s a wonderful thing to do. I think if I tried volunteering, I’d leave each day in a flood of tears or end up trying to adopt them ALL. :(
socratic
I’m there almost every weekend to try to find a dog to adopt (no luck yet), and it’s a great facility. I have my cycle: I start in the puppy room, realize I don’t have time to raise a puppy, move to the adult dog room, get slightly depressed, move to the cat room, back to the puppy room, then out. I really should just start volunteering there.
Is there a balloon juice secret handshake or sign or something? I’ll flash it next time I’m there.
John Cole
I can’t do the volunteer work. I would have 3 dogs and 9 cats in my apartment. I just give them 50 bucks every now and then for food.
I still can not believe people give up their ten and twelve year old dogs. Those owners should be shot.
empty
For once, I can actually agree with you. The only exception would be for owners who are themselves incapacitated.
Saul Goode
Lamest post ever? That was a beautiful anecdote. We need more stuff like this on the intertubes.
demkat620
We adopted in Sept. Full grown Jack Russell Terrier. He has already taken over.
He has more toys than my kids.
95% of white yuppies
But why would you adopt a dog when you can have a puggle named Bailey for just over a grand?
Takes all kinds, I guess
John Cole
My parents have a Jack Russell Terrier. Don’t worry, they calm down after the first 13 years.
jnfr
I break out crying every time I see that Sara McLaughlin ad for the Humane Society. I can’t bear the quiet lost look the abused animals have. All our cats have been abandoned strays, but I don’t think I could take working at a shelter. You’re a braver man than I am, Michael. Bless you.
empty
One of my children is very allergic to dogs and cats. But he loves, and is very good with, animals. He desperately wanted a dog so in order to discover one that he could live with we challenged him with a number of different dogs. He would come home with red streaming eyes and insist he was feeling just fine. We finally found a dog that he was not allergic to. I must have spent hours over the last few years watching the two interact.
Zuzu
Me too..enough to make me sign a monthly pledge (ASPCA, not Humane Soc., BTW).
Have to admit that on second or third viewing, we began to notice a preponderance of little one-eyed critters.
ASPCA ad
calipygian
My girlfriend worked at an ASPCA animal shelter in a particularly liberal part of semi-rural California. They took “no kill” so seriously that they wouldn’t exterminate the rats that infested the place.
She quit after a few weeks.
There are animals that deserve love and care and there is vermin that carries diseases that cause epidemics. No one is going to adopt a Norwegian Rat.
calipygian
My girlfriend worked at an ASPCA animal shelter in a particularly liberal part of semi-rural California. They took “no kill” so seriously that they wouldn’t exterminate the rats that infested the place.
She quit after a few weeks.
There are animals that deserve love and care and there is vermin that carries diseases that cause epidemics. No one is going to adopt a Norwegian Rat.
demkat620
First dog was a golden. Talk about a horse of a different color. This one hates the broom, the mop, the vacuum, the hair dryer, and the washing machine. But he sleeps next to you and makes those comforting sighs and grunts and groans and when you come home he jumps straight off the floor. A dog is a wonderful thing.
oldfatherwwilliam
Not a lame post. John’s right abt older dogs. To betray any dog’s trust is the lamest most despicable act short of human child abuse I’m able to imagine.
Angela
The animals shelters here in the Twin Cities and western Wisconsin have gotten to a point where they won’t let you adopt a cat unless they approve of your home, you swear it won’t EVER go outside, etc. Basically: You have to swear and prove that it will live better than most people, or you don’t get a pet.
I understand their intentions, but… a cat just needs a good home, not to live in a cage because well-meaning people don’t think you’ll buy the right brand of catfood.
(I have four rescued pets: a dog and three cats.)
numbskull
Hey, Norwegian browns are very friendly. If you start with a handful of Fruit Loops and the right attitude, after a couple of visits they’ll literally roll over in your hands/arms for a belly rub, just like a cat.
The Moar You Know
Michael: Thank you. I couldn’t do it, but I’m very happy that there are people who can; I’d go to pieces, emotionally.
Amen, John. My parents were going to give up their twelve-year old cat, for no better reason than her presence interfered with their bi-coastal lifestyle.
I lost an enormous amount of respect for them that day.
And then I adopted her. Hell, I’m allergic, but damn, there are some things you just don’t do. What else could I do, send her off to live with strangers? She would have died in weeks.
She died in my arms two and a half years later, having settled in wonderfully and taken over my very small household. It was worth every second of stuffed-up sinuses and I’ll adopt again as soon as I finish my remodel.
Cain
I agree. I was just at the shelter today looking at the dogs and cats. I have two cats that I picked up in the shelter. The first one was 6 months old and the other we got as a new born. The 6 month old is a total rock star, smartest cat you ever saw and he runs around this neighborhood like a street urchin. Every one loves him.
It breaks my heart when I go and see unwanted animals. I went to the dog section and there was a couple that would bark and bark until you come and pet them and then they would be quiet and then when you stopped paying attention to them they start barking again. Their desperate for your attention.
Alas I could never get a dog at this time. I make frequent international trip and a dogs just hate to be separated from their owners.
Great post, Michael and i admire anyone who is willing to volunteer at a shelter. I’d like to do that myself. I just don’t think I could handle putting or knowing that an animal is going to be put to sleep. :/ I’m a total wimp. But they do great work.
Couple of weeks ago I saw a chihuahua who had escaped and was running around a main road lost and confused. Crossed a street and got hit by a car who probably didn’t see it (it was at night) I watched horrified as the poor thing rolled around in the street before it somehow picked itself up and limped and hopped around. I blocked traffic, picked up the dog (in one hand!) and drove off. There was only one pet hospital open and we managed to get him in there and get him fixed up. His owner picked him up a couple of hours. A happy ending as well. Looks like he only got his hind leg nicked, but it could have been much worse. But without volunteers, there woudl have been no where I could have taken him.
cain
Dave Trowbridge
A friend just gave me a copy of Thich Nhat Hanh’s 14 precepts of engaged Buddhism, and your post is a wonderful example of following #4:
“Do not avoid suffering or close your eyes before suffering. Do not lose awareness of the existence of suffering in the life of the world. Find ways to be with those who are suffering, including personal contact, visits, images, and sounds. By such means, awaken yourself and others to the reality of suffering in the world.”
Like some of the other commenters, I couldn’t bring myself to do what you are doing–even writing about this makes me tear up. (And I’m somewhat allergic to cats–it takes me a month or two to adapt to a new one.) My contribution has been to almost always adopt animals from the hospital section of the pound. My tabby Siamese with the broken hip (which healed fine after I kept him crated for a month) was the best cat I ever had. We also adopted a cat whose lower lip had been almost torn off by some accident. He looked like Charles Laughton after we had him sewed up, but had a great personality.
Dave Trowbridge
BTW, the hardest part for me of visiting the pound is reading the tags on the cage doors and knowing just how long each animal had to live. I wrote this sonnet about it:
THROWAWAY LIVES
“Abandon hope all ye who enter here.”
I scorned these words, that once held holy awe;
I banished Satan with a knowing sneer
And vanquished sin with scientific law.
Insisting that the spirit of our age,
The fruit of intellect’s unfolding flower,
Had made Hell obsolete, an empty cage,
I eloquently scoffed about sin’s power.
But then between some rusty bars I met
The trusting gaze of one condemned to die
For others’ sins; and seeing the date was set
For civic mercy’s sting I could but sigh.
Bereft of speech I stood within that jail;There eloquence was hers: a wagging tail.
Studly Pantload
Michael D., I’m speechless after your post. (But then, so are the Mrs. and I each time the Sarah M. commercial comes on.)
The two of us have four “used” cats (dogs not allowed in our apt.) that are for all intents and purposes our children. And we appreciate that it takes a special kind of fortitude to work with homeless critters you can’t whisk away yourself. I know there are humans in need all over this planet of ours, but I’m still convinced that those working compassionately with animals are like unto angels.
Kathy
God bless you Michael. Any post about caring for creatures who need love will never be lame. My daughter loves animals (she’s 16) and my husband is horribly allergic. I am going to discuss volunteering with her tomorrow.
In the Easter spirit – “That what you do for the least among you, you do for me”
(sorry I can’t remember the exact quote, but Michael, this post shows you live in a way Jesus would appreciate far more than he would appreciate some right-wing Republicans.)
Cain
Dave,
That was beautiful. Thank you for sharing that with us.
cain
empty
Thank you Dave.
JR
I’m watching a “Studio 60” DVD with my Humane Society-adopted pit bull and Humane Society-adopted mutant cat.
They rock. SPCAs, too.
Good on you, Michael.
Hillary Rettig / The Lifelong Activist
what a wonderful post. the story about the little basset…as far as I can tell – as a mother of both traumatized foster kids and traumatized rescue dogs – people and dogs have roughly the same needs for love, affirmation and security, and suffer in similar ways when they don’t get it.
paraphrasing (very loosely!) Dr. King: compassion anywhere leads to compassion everywhere.
kify
My mom volunteers at the ASPCA taking care of cats, same as you. She loves it!I saw a beagle today at PetSmart that was 10+ (I think 12 is more like it)…Poor baby had benign growths on her face like my 13 year old basset and a very strange bark. She was definitely depressed. I know it will be almost impossible to find a forever home for her so I will be searching for a beagle rescue “retirement” home online. There is a great basset home called the “House of Puddles” where they take in old dogs and dogs with medical conditions and care for them until they pass…Check out the website sometime…they make youtube videos which are fun!
Fulcanelli
Dude, you rock.
My wife and I are the happy owners of two pound puppies, we got from a local shelter almost 9 years ago.
A rottie/spaniel mix female and a doberman/shepherd mix male who is the smartest, most intuitive dog we’ve ever owned or seen.
We have an incredible bond with both but especially the male due to the fact that we’ve helped him beat bone cancer, which was diagnosed over a year ago, and he’s doing fantastic.
We own our own business and take them to work every day, they’re family, period, and we treat them as such.
It’s tremendous what you’re doing.
Nothing makes me angry enough to do violence faster than abuse and cruelty to animals, especially dogs or cats.
Keep up the great work!
DrDave
Michael:
I’m a veterinarian and permanent caretaker of a rescued Golden Retriever (she owns me much more than the other way around). Thank you for the volunteer work you are doing. The time you put in really adds greatly to the quality of life of the animals you interact with but it is also good for your well being. So think of it as positive mental health time for you and the critters!
J. Michael Neal
This hits very close to home, today. I have four cats; three were strays that wandered into our yard, one of them on a February day when it was -5 degrees (Fahrenheit, for you foreigners), and he had huddled under the wheel of our car. The fourth I picked up at a shelter, and gave to my then wife as a birthday present. I described Special Ed a few open threads back.
About a week ago, a friendly gray tabby started showing up. One ear was chewed up. I started feeding him every evening. It turned out that one of my downstairs tenants was feeding him in the afternoon, so he was getting double rations. I didn’t see any signs around the neighborhood. I can’t possibly take in another cat. Dave would, but the one he has is positive for feline immunodeficiency virus; she got it from another cat he adopted who died a year and a half later. So, he really can’t take in another cat until Kipling passes on.
Today was the day I broke down and hauled him to the Humane Society. It is one of my least favorite things to do, though at least this guy wasn’t so scared that he peed in the travel box, like the last one I took there did. The woman who checked him in said that the ear looked like frostbite, so it’s good that he’s in out of the cold.
sab
I agree about adopting adult dogs. I have four rescue dogs, ranging in age from four to twelve years. My town has a four dog limit, so we could only take in the four-year old when the fifteen-year old lab died.
Puppies are cute, but they eat everything in sight for at least a year, and can’t be dependably housebroken for at least six months.
Adult rescues know they have been rescued, and they are always grateful. They usually know the basic rules of household living, and what they don’t know they generally learn quickly. Our newest dog is a victim of predatory mortgage lending. His old owners loved him dearly, and would still have him if they weren’t working so hard to keep a roof over their own heads.
There’s lots of great dogs out there these days.
Phoenix Woman
Michael, you are a good’un. That is all.
LiberalTarian
I have been in student housing and can’t have pets, but I’m moving next month. I am spending all kinds of time on petfinder, looking for my new dog. I want one between 6 and 18 months. Doesn’t look like I will have trouble finding one, which is pretty sad.
I wish we had a more dog-engaged society. We have a long history with them, and it is a pity to see us letting that symbiosis atrophy.
Zuzu
I just checked it out. I can’t believe she keeps all those pooches in her house…which looks immaculate. And a big ol’ yard for them to snuffle around in … also perfectly kept up.
Pretty impressive. I just donated through her PayPal link. Easy peasey.
So… thanks!
Michael D.
With apologies to Tunch. I hate cats. Or at least I thought I did.
After working at the Humane Society, there about 4 that I want to adopt. Unfortunately, my own dog wouldn’t have it.
Michael D.
What surprised me most was that almost none of the employees there had adopted an animal. In fact, when I started, I wanted to have every puppy there. But after about three days, you realize what you’re there for – to take care of them and get them out the door as quickly as possible.
If you volunteer, I guarantee the urge to adopt them all goes away quickly! :-)
Michael D.
It might surprise you to know that I am not a big fan of “no kill” shelters. I am an animal lover to the extreme – but no kill shelters are very psychologically damaging to dogs especialy. I have been to one. Dogs that have been there a long time go crazy. They walk circles in their cages the entire day because they are, quite literally, insane.
I don’t think “no kill” shelters are as humane as people think they are.
Sharon
Michael, thanks for spreading the word on adult dogs. I’m a ‘rescue rider” and pet foster. The pet rescues listed on petfinder.com and at stores like Petsmart and Petco pull the most adoptable animals still in danger of being euthanized and move them to areas where there’s room in a rescue or foster home for them to stay till they’re adopted. They all can use support every day.
And for all you allergy sufferers, have your Dr. put you on Singular; I have asthma and I’m allergic to animals, since I was put on that medication I am symptom free. Which is good, because I have 9 cats and 4 dogs right now including the foster animals.
Russ
Basset Hounds, like all hounds, are more pack oriented, and need even more social company. I have Beagles, a very close cousin. The thing about these dogs is because they’re smaller and so good tempered, scientists like to use them for experiments, like breaking their legs.
heet
We have a mutt stray given to us by a stranger who didn’t want him… Best. Dog. Ever.
Every dog I’ll ever own will be a stray.
mk
Michael, you’re extraordinary. Thank you for this work it would destroy me to do. And, you are correct about adopting older animals. The most loyal, defend you to the death, dogs we have ever shared our lives with (spouse and I) were adopted as older dogs. I’ve loved every one, and they me in return. You are simply an exceptional human, and the thought of you makes this planet a better place for me. Thank you.
Libby Spencer
Michael that was the most beautiful post evah. I’ve been thinking about volunteering at my local shelter also but I’ve been afraid I’d come home crying every time because I couldn’t take them all home. You’ve given me the courage to check it out.
Darkness
I adopted my first cat from a kill shelter in a very liberal town. She was about 24 hours from being put down. Made a great companion (for me, she didn’t like anyone else without a lot of getting to know you) for 13 years or so. People who buy from a puppy or kitten mill or a pet store even, break my heart at the lost opportunity. An adult animal is a fully known quantity, people really shouldn’t overlook that.
I remember now that people railed against that shelter being a kill one, but I was neither here nor there on it, till I adopted from a no-kill shelter in a much more conservative city. The place could not manage the animals they had with the resources they had. They were trying their best, but really, some animals (and they are just animals, like the pigs and cows and chickens we kill and eat every day) are not adoptable. I understand now the wisdom then of focusing limited resources on the ones most likely to find homes and ensuring adequate resources for the ones waiting for homes.
I have a good friend who volunteers at a no-kill and truly that’s the point. Rescuing becomes all important for the people there, not so much the animals at times.
Bibblesnæð
Not lame at all.
Good for you. Everybody should do this. And bring a dog home from the pound when you’re done for the day. But keep on volunteering. These dogs just need homes where somebody will love them and play with them.
Dogs are the best thing that ever happened to people. Not the wheel. Not fire or writing or the computer. Dogs.
mightygodking
In fairness, surprisingly often pets that are given up to the Humane Society are given up because their owners can’t afford the medical procedures to keep them alive. My roommate had to give up his cat when the cat needed a $1000 operation, and the Humane Society was willing to do it, but their rules state that if you can’t afford to pay for the pet’s medical health, you have to give it up. (At least, that’s how it works here.)
Believe me, said roommate was miserable for weeks.
some guy
We found our dog–your basic black and white mutt–by the side of the road in the middle of nowhere. She loves us fiercely.
Great post, Michael, and thanks much for your work.
Sasha
Some people don’t have a choice.
One unfortunate side effect of the entire subprime mortgage meltdown is that so many pet-owning homeowners who lose their house cannot keep their animals. Either they move into rentals that won’t allow pets or the number or kind of pets they have, have to move far away and can’t feasibly take their pets with them, or simply can’t afford to own a pet anymore. Where I live in Southern Florida, the shelters are being flooded with these “subprime pets” whose owners, for one reason or another, simply can’t keep them.
My girlfriend and I, after hearing about this trend in the news, went out and adopted a five-year-old Corgi/Lab mix. (We’d wanted to get our two-year-old Border Collie/Lab mix a pet of his own anyway. :) Nelly, who looks like a furry Twinkie, is an absolute dear. She was turned in over-the-counter at the shelter by a family that had to move out of state and couldn’t take her with them. I am sure it was a heart-breaking experience because this slightly-used dog is one of the sweetest creatures I have ever known.
If you ever feel compelled to post about the entire sub-prime mess again, bringing attention to the plight of these poor “subprime pets” is a worthy aside to highlight.
Zuzu
Oops, meant to include the HOP link in my prior:
House of Puddles
A wonderful thing.
Zuzu
My parents adopted a grown Lhasa Apso from the pound when they were in their ’80s. He was the sweetest little guy – slightly neurotic about the paw licking – but as affectionate and loyal as could be.
He was a real little pal to my dad after my mom passed away, and through the years my dad spent as an invalid. He died in my arms a month after my dad passed.
Zuzu
My parents adopted a grown Lhasa Apso from the pound when they were in their 80s. He was the sweetest little guy – slightly neurotic about the paw licking – but as affectionate and loyal as could be.
He was a real little pal to my dad after my mom passed away, and through the years my dad spent as an invalid. He died in my arms a month after my dad passed.
Jill
Angela brought up something that I think is important. I’ve done the volunteer thing, so I know all about people who come in with kids and you hear them say to the kids, “Now he’s YOU’RE responsibility!” — and you don’t let them adopt because you know you’re going to see that dog and cat again.
But there comes a point where the volunteers get so burnt that NO home is good enough — and that’s when it’s time to take a break.
I had a friend try to adopt a 3-year-old shih-tzu from our county shelter once. It’s a kill shelter, so you think they’d be happy to place an adult dog. Her husband goes home for lunch every day so even though she worked 3 days a week, the dog would have company for an hour every day, and would only be alone the rest of the time for 3 days. They had a house and a fenced yard. And the volunteer wouldn’t let her adopt because there wasn’t a person home ALL DAY EVERY DAY.
She then went out and bought a puppy from a pet store. The dog is now 17 and is well-loved and cared for.
Now what was accomplished there?
I understand that you want pets to have a good home and you don’t want to see them returned. But sometimes the horror stories blind volunteers to a just fine home because it’s not 100% perfect — perfect being, I guess, the volunteer’s home (which often has double-digits of pets in it. And at that time it’s time to take a break.
My older cat was a stray in a park for a year until the guy feeding her was able to trap her and take her to the no-kill shelter in the area. They kept her for 10 months away from the general population because she was so terrified. After we adopted her at the age of 4 years old, she spent 3 months under a chair. It is now seven years later and she is only now really trusting us. But it’s so rewarding, the gratitude we get from this cat. Every day I thank the shelter for letting us have her. It was Christmas Eve, and they didn’t want to let adoptions go home because of the excitement of the holiday. But since our holiday was going to be quiet, they let us take her home. Because that’s the kind of judgment shelters make — and sometimes they make the right one.
Krista
Heh…Lhasas are awesome. And I’m another fan of the idea of adopting older dogs. We got Dreyfus (our Lhasa) when he was 13, due to his owner (my husband’s aunt) passing away suddenly. We knew nobody would adopt a 13-year old dog with bad kidneys.
We only had him for two years, and had to spend a sizeable chunk of change on his health, but it was so incredibly rewarding to make that fuzzy little frigger’s last years happy and comfortable, with a soft bed, lots of love, and a not inconsiderable amount of rotisserie chicken.
So we’ve decided that the next dog we get is going to be a senior as well. I kind of like the idea of being a nursing home of sorts for geriatric pooches, spoiling them rotten as they live out their last few years.
Good for you, Michael. I’m glad you’re doing what you’re doing. And people who are cruel to animals…let’s just say that even though I’m atheist, I sometimes hope that there actually IS a Hell, so that those rotten fuckers can get their just desserts.
joe
God Bless, man.
Desert Rat
As someone who appears destined to lose his favorite cat in the next few days/weeks to lymphatic cancer, there’s nothing here to mock. There is, however, much here to praise.
I’d do anything for my cat, Mystic, to reach her sixth birthday. It doesn’t look like that’s going to happen.
You are doing good work, Michael, and it sounds like you find it enjoyable. Keep it up.
Evinfuilt
Its really simple, you always adopt from a Shelter, never from a Pet Shop.
I adopted a 3 yr old Sheltie/Chow mix from a non-kill shelter. I know in a normal shelter he wouldn’t be around today, but still it was in a normal shelter I found my 1yr old Eskie/Chow. She’s 10 now and I’ve loved every day. It kills me to think that she was adopted once before, and returned with-in a few weeks (and put on the list for likely euthanasia.)
But just over a year ago I adopted my first cats ever. Both rescued, but both also were kittens. I’ve never has anything so young before. I doubt I will again, but to have such a precious animal sitting in the palm of my hand was worth it.
There are 4 shelters in my area I try to keep regular donations of food/money to, they do a great job, one too hard for me. Its too hard on me just going to them and not wanting to rescue them all.
HeartlandLiberal
You remind me of being sensitive to what too many humans forget, namely, animals are just as full of emotions as humans, and these include fear. That poor dog was terrified, and you reassured it.
I will never forget one year when I was live trapping racoons to thin the heard in our neighborhood. (15 racoons and a growing season later we actually got to harvest enough of my grapes to make homemade jelly that year.)
I would haul them off to the forest several miles away and release them. One was a large female. I noticed when I took the cage out of my trunk and was about to release it that poor thing was shivering from one end to the other. It was fear, pure and simple. I am sure she could not analyze it in thought as we humans do, but I assured her I was not going to harm her, put the cage on the ground, pulled back the front latch and door, and she was gone into the nearby underbrush in a flash.
That incident has stayed with me as a graphic reminder of animal intelligence; and emotion.
El
Read this somewhere and it stayed with me:
Long ago, a huge chasm opened in the Earth with Man on one side and all the animals on the other.
At the last moment, Dog leaped across the increasing breach to the side of Man and we have been forever the richer.
jeff
i volunter at our local humane society and I encourage anyone able to volunteer. Also I thing that alot of the shelter overcrowding could be alleviated if we made anyone choosing to breed animals to get a license and have the license fee be $2500 a year or so.
Kynn
I’m assuming that this is actual volunteerism (and not, like, court-ordered community service), and if so, I commend you for your charitable works!