Saturday, November 27, 2010

When did Cruelty become Officially Acceptable?

Throughout the years of fighting and arguing with colleagues and "supposedly" animal-lovers over the same subject, I have learnt to mind my own business and try to change what I can on my side when it comes to ear cropping and tail docking...But I get mad each time I see animals who have been mutilated for the pleasure of the owner.
Since 1 week now I have been struggling to save a Boxer puppy from septic death because of an infected tail amputation. Personally, I do not understand what kind of ethics some vets have in accepting to cut tails and ears of puppies?!?! Did you chose to be a vet to inflict suffering to an animal? I guess the answer is simple...and its the money!
And all of you owners who say you love your dogs? Since when did it become acceptable for you to torture an animal by snipping off its tail or re-shaping it ears to fit in "standards"?? Would you cut the fingers or the tongue of your child if tomorrow some dumb fools declared it as fashionable? And yet you do it to your puppy and find it "normal"!
So back to little puppy...brought in emergency last Saturday with what owner thought was Parvovirus infection (diarrhoea/vomiting). Brief inspection revealed a severely infected tail amputation and all the signs of a raging septicaemia. Emergency IV fluids, aggressive antibiotic therapy, daily visits to the clinic and we gained the upper hand and pulled the baby back from the grave by wednesday. Another person who was witnesing the treatments whilst waiting for her turn asked the owner what was the name of the dog. To the "He doesn't have a name yet" answer she replied "You should call him Sam!"...and Sammy Junior was christened!
Today Sam Junior is back to life and off antibiotics and is as lively as ever, but did he ever ask for all that? Was he born with a tail to have it painfully cut? Damn You! Old farts at the "Kennel Club" who invented standards for dogs. Bravo! For turning a loving pet into an object with specfic "designs"...and I cannot understand why the same owners who feel compassion to the plight of mistreated animals agree to and accept the concept that their dogs MUST be mutilated to be "good-looking"! I know so many of them!! Is cosmetic cruelty acceptable for you and yet you are the first one to shout out loud when someone ties a chain around the neck of a dog instead of using a collar? Isn't that the summum of hypocrisy??
Ears and tail serve a very important purpose for dogs...they are used in communication. Depending on how a dog positions or moves ears and its tail, it sends a clear signal to any other dog about his intentions/mood etc.And yet, breed standards are more important than that for so many of us...and yet we decide to deprive them of proper anatomical means of communication.
Cosmetic Ear cropping and Tail docking has been banned in so many civilised countries but I guess Mauritius is not yet in the civilised pool when it comes to Animals. And we will never be there so long responsible owners prefer to close their eyes on the CRUELTY aspect of this practice...so long Veterinarians, who are supposed to be the guardians of Animal Welfare, agree to cut the ears and tails of puppies.At this age, they cannot be safely anaesthetised...I let you imagine for yourself how this surgery is done and,if they are lucky not to be infected,how many days they will have to put up with atrocious pain. In the name of what? Just for the sake of YOUR selfish need to have a dog fitting into stupid "standards"...
Get back to your senses people!! Cruelty, in all its forms, is UNACCEPTABLE!! I am doing my part as a vet and barking at Cosmetic Mutilations of dogs on this blog...now see what YOU have to do. Be the change you want to bring and stop pretending that "its ok" because its the breed type!I know, I will be shocking so many with what I just wrote. Be shocked, get over it and come back to your senses and talk about it with people! If by talking you prevented at least one puppy from being mutilated that will be one good thing you did!
Sam junior, has a 0.9 cm tail stump left that is healing and he tried hard today to "wag" it and lick the face of his owner today...Unconditional love. No matter how the owner looks like, whether he is black, white, has long hair, pointed or flat nose, whether he wears Armani or he is sweating...the dog accepts and loves his owner. But unfortunately, this is not true for so many owners...the love is under specific conditions...dog must fit in the "standards"; even if that means chopping off tails and ears!!
Crazy Hypocritical world we live in...

2 comments:

  1. So much Right you have Dr Sam!!!!!Poor animals!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sam junior ne connait pas heureusement une autre forme de torture que l'on retrouve surtout dans d'autres pays:etre "fashion" a l'unisson de son maitre.Avoir du vernis,faire des teinture,porter des vetements Haute couture,subir des massages anti-stress et autres toilettages...Sans parler des Nouveaux Animaux de Compagnie qui font fureur en Europe.Vers quel monde allons-nous?

    ReplyDelete