As I was skimming through my email today, it dawned on me how much the animal rights zealots have utilized the divide & conquer tactic in their activities. That combined with excellent propaganda has really hurt all facets of the animal ownership community. They are using us against ourselves. To quote Pogo, "We have met the enemy and they is us."
The fanatics, which includes among others: PeTA, HSUS, and the ASPCA, have divided all pet owners along the lines of rescue vs purchase; desexed vs intact; no use vs use; guardians vs owners; and much, much more. It's my opinion that this divisiveness needs to cease. ALL animal owners need to unite against the fanatics who are out to destroy the human - animal bond.
Some comments that I recently read with this divisiveness in mind follow. The comments were made by different people and were specifically with regard to a family who purchased a puppy in Colorado that had been recently imported from TX. The puppy died only four (4) days later.
Anyway, here we go....
1. "If this were a breeder bought pup, there would be holy hell to pay, so why can "rescues" get away with this?"
What occurred is between the rescue and the buyer. It is a civil matter. It is no one else's business. It never use to be a matter of public interest until the AR's came in to destroy us all.
You also have to look at the "intent". Was this malicious, negligence or not the rescue's fault? That all has to be clarified between the rescue and buyer - and the rescue and the shelter in Texas.
I can see where the rescue thought since having a health certificate, all was OK. Sometimes it is and sometimes it isn't. This time, it wasn't. I don't think it was so much intentional as it was of not being familiar with incubated conditions and not having a lot of experience.
You're, or course, entitled to your opinion, however, with your getting so upset --- you're doing exactly what the AR's want you to do. Divide and conquer ... are you going to give them the satisfaction?
2. "Can't the breeding community demand pet stores and rehoming/rescue centers be held to the same high levels of are etched, that is demanded of them?"
Why do you want to hurt these other animal enterprises? If you think that these high level of standards is not fair or unreasonable for the breeding community, why would you want to put the same unreasonable standards onto other animal enterprises? To get even? They didn't so anything to you.
It's the AR's (animal rights zealots) that are the problem and they should be eliminated. You should fight to eliminate the AR's and the unreasonable regulations that are put up against us. Again - another example of divide and conquer and you fell for it.
3. "If a small time, one bitch breeder had sold this pup, it would be everywhere, arguing poor health care, etc, even if raised in the White House!"
You bet your heinny that the breeder would be plastered all over the Internet and receiving obscene emails with death threats. Would you want that to be done to you? Then why wish it on someone else --- like that rescue?
Why not just accept that any incident between an animal enterprise and buyer is a private matter and that if it can't be resolved amongst themselves, it can be decided in a civil court?
4. "Rehoming/rescue" groups should be held to the same, if not higher standards than breeders, since they want to hold the moral high ground."
You're lumping all rescues into the same group and that's not fair. All rescues are not AR-minded rescues. So you want to punish them all. And none, IMO should be punished.
The way I see it, there are many types of animal enterprises and that's good, because people should be able to make a choice. Not everyone wants a dog from a breeder. People should be able to buy at pet shops or rescues or anywhere that one is available. As animal providers, we are all good - we all serve a purpose to allow people to make a choice. We have to stop attacking one another and concentrate on eliminating the trouble maker ... the AR's.
People like Frank Losey have worked very hard with long hours and no compensation for time or expenses to accomplish that against HSUS. And there's Center for Consumer Freedom. And individuals like Betsy (whinwoof) that have busted their chops trying to work around the legislation in their states.
I guess all I'm saying is that the AR's have done awful things and have us conditioned to lash out. We can't let them take our pride and decency away from us.
Yours in dogs...
