Furious Over Dog Cruelty Reports? Hug Your Hounds

Meet your pet.

I’m a little fired up. OK, I’m absolutely all out furious. I’ve just read the account in the November 7 Paducah Sun about the 72 pit bulls found in two locations in Graves County. Oh yeah, and the 11 dead ones with bullets in their heads dredged out of Clarks River.

Our iPet of the Week sponsor, Dr. Eugene Ceglinski of Ceglinski Animal Clinic, had the grim task of doing necropsies on the bodies. I can’t imagine the toll this took on a man, a good man, who has dedicated his life to providing compassionate care to the pets in this area.

Dr. Eugene Ceglinski

“When all the dogs had been retrieved from the water and were laid out on the bridge, it gave me this sinking feeling about how they ended up,” Doc says, in his quiet way. “I mean, when I took the skull X-rays, and realized that each of these dogs had been shot point blank. I don’t want to overdramatize it, but for that to happen, and for them to be just thrown over the bridge, well, it bothers me, Patience. I just get a sinking, and I mean sinking feeling.”

(The insinuation, what Doc was too kind to say, is that for the dog to be shot point blank, meant that he or she trusted the person who fired the shot.)

Doc took a breath and went on: “Every person who has come into the clinic since has expressed outrage. I’ve been surprised by how vocal the public sentiment is.”

What Can We Do?
We can help the dogs seized by donating to the Mayfield/Graves County Animal Shelter.

And we can take a good look at how our own pets live. Got a dog tied out back? If you live in Paducah, and your dog is tied to a fixed point for more than eight hours a day, you are breaking the law and are subject to a ticket and a fine.

Got a cat that you let outside? The average age of an indoor cat is 15 years. The average age of an outdoor cat is 3 to 5 years. Read those two sentences out loud to yourself. Three times.

Think about our iPets of the Week. What if Mortise the boxer got tied to a tree? He ate a couch after all. But nope, he’s Jimi’s best friend and a source of daily laughter, love and companionship. And Buddy, our terrier cross? What if he spent his days tied to a doghouse? Would Teeny Grubbs be alive to hold him in her lap and spoil him rotten?

How about Puppy, the 19-year-old cat? Would Sarah’s life be as rich if Puppy was just another victim of cat vs. car? And there’s Kizzie, the rescued Doberman, who teaches our elementary school children about dog safety and dog love. Benji, Maddie, Sugar, Scrawny and O.C., Frodo and Heather.

These are exceptional animals, because their humans have given them the opportunity to be.

What Doesn’t Work
Often when situations like the dog fighting ring in Graves County are brought to the light of day, well-meaning individuals seek to solve the problem by introducing legislation to ban certain breeds of dogs.

This does not work.

Pit bulls, raised properly, are devoted, gentle, loving pets. And in the wrong hands, even Lassie herself could be made vicious.

On Tuesday, November 11, the Paducah Kennel Club honored another Buddy. He’s the pit bull/ Chow Chow cross who pulled his family’s baby to safety during a house fire. (More on Buddy in an upcoming iPet of the Week.)

Afterthought
Our pets, every single one of them, have the potential to bring us joy, love, laughter and companionship. But not if they are tied to a tree. Not if they are road kill. Not if they are an inconvenient afterthought in a busy life.

It’s up to us.

In honor of those pit bulls, we could do something extra for the pets in our life. Take an extra walk. Throw the ball longer. Make a really cool cat toy and play for the longest time. Have a long, gentle, thorough grooming session.

Or simply sit together for a while in a sunny spot.

Congratulations! Your pet is the iPet of the Week!

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