I love
animals. I always have, I always will. As you may know, I’m currently being
trained by two kittens, I have a tank full of fish which I saved from becoming a giant bouillabaisse, and I’ve managed not to
commit GBH on Horrible Horace, the Dog Next Door. No, I’ve gritted my teeth
(much like Horrible Horace did, but on that occasion he had a chunk of my leg
between the two halves of his doggy dentition) and let him be, even though he’s
probably the one animal I will never love.
I’ve
fostered animals, rescued animals, raised money for them, loved them, paid
their vet bills and generally conducted myself well in all matters animal
related. However, I’m
somewhat perplexed at the moment. Let me explain.
I flit and
flutter around the interweb on a regular basis, popping in on various forums, social networking sites
and blogs. However, I’ve noticed of late that, almost everywhere I go, there seems to
be little else to look at but a mass of adverts for rehoming, or, perhaps more
worrying, lost and stolen dogs and cats.
I don’t
have many “friends” on Facebook, but in the last week alone, between them they’ve
posted 15 photographs of injured or missing dogs and cats, from Land’s End to John
O’Groats , together with various updates on the 15 including the occasional
message of thanks when a pet is found. These latter, however, are quite rare.
So what’s
my problem with all this? Well, I
have a couple of problems with it, if I’m being honest.
Firstly, I’m
getting beyond “compassion fatigue”. And the nature of social networking means
that if someone loses a dog in Scotland, I’ll get to hear about it, even though
the chances of said dog turning up anywhere near me are about as slim as those
of me being elected to Parliament.
Secondly,
whilst I understand the power of social networking, I also think that this
power is being hugely diluted by the sheer volume of these messages, and
however heartless I may sound (and I’m not, really, I’m not) I don’t visit
Facebook to read a list of missing animals.
Having
vented my spleen, I have to say that my other problem is perhaps a bigger one.
I simply don’t understand why so many dogs and cats appear to be being stolen.
Who on earth is stealing them and for what reason? Maybe it’s best I don’t
know, as I suspect the real reasons may be too awful to contemplate. Has this
always been the case, or is the Facebook phenomenon highlighting an existing
problem which never seemed to be large-scale because such instances were never
brought together in one place? I’m sure a proportion of these animals have
become lost, rather than having been stolen, but that does not detract from the
(seemingly) many cases of people who saw someone actually steal their dog, and
where the question of theft is not in doubt.
I should
also say that it is a testament to the compassion of my friends on Facebook
that so many of them do take the trouble to spread the word about missing
animals. It’s me. I know it is.
Please post
your hate mail below…..
I'm so glad you've written this. I was beginning to feel a heartless lump as I was wondering how I could de-friend the sources of the animal torture/abandonment stories that are ruining my mornings. I love animals and know horrible things happen to them but I can't do anything about it when I'm on a different continent or even if I'm on the same one. It just makes me feel desperate and useless.
ReplyDeletePhew. I am relieved to read your comment, BtoB. I've been feeling such a heel, but, like you, I know there's little I can do directly, and much as I value the friendship of the people posting these things, I wonder if they simply don't notice that it's reaching epidemic proportions. And yes, I feel desperate and useless too.
DeleteI do so agree.
ReplyDeleteAfter being tempted to read a specially harrowing story of abused dogs In the Far East I joined the WSPA and donated £10 a month. I was then inundated with heartbreaking stories and pleas for more and more money. They probably spent more money on postage than I was donating. I then did a bit of research and discovered that less than 30% of what they receive in donations is spent on improving animal welfare so I heartlessly cancelled my donation. After that I was inundated with phone calls imploring me to reinstate it. It was horrible.
Sadly I have come to the conclusion that human nature is such that nasty people are very good at taking advantage of well meaning generous and caring people so the best thing I can do is hug my dog and pray for all the ill-treated animals in the world, as I can't save them all by myself and certainly not if I am relieved of all my spare cash to fund demands for more money.
I also feel desperate and useless but if I really want to help I will start local, maybe by fostering or dog walking for the rescue. Compassion overload or a suspicious nature - It's difficult to know who's genuine and who's just after your money for themselves.
Thanks for saying this,Jean.I felt very much out on a limb when I made this post,because I DO care, and I feel bad for somehow being made to feel I should care more, or do more. I also feel desperately sorry for anyone who loses a beloved pet to theft, or accident or maliciousness. I think you're right, though. The best way to do something is to do something locally. It just seems that the internet trying to convince us that everything is local, and we're bombarded with news about stuff we can't do anything about because it's too far away.
DeleteI'm totally inactive on Twitter and Facebook so have been spared the avalanche you describe.
ReplyDeleteI do what I can for animals around me and support local spay and neuter clinics...my mother supports
Dogs Trust in the U.K. as she is too old to risk having a pet which will outlive her (mark you it would probably have to be an elephant to do that).
When I was living in France an English animal lover liberated a large number of dogs kept in a large barn in the next commune....he had noticed that some days there was silence and other days howling and whining...and found he had uncovered part of a ring whose purpose was most unpleasant.
It does not bear thinking about.
I have had my beagle stolen...by her erstwhile owner who has sold her on now that she is fat and sleek. You can imagine how I feel about it...but plastering the social media with her photograph is of little use whereas asking the postmen to keep an eye out might just bring results.
Local works.
Local does seem to work better. I wish that could be shown. Horrible about your beagle, but I believe you're right,and I hope it does bring results.
DeleteYou're far from alone, CNB, though not many people are brave enough to come clean and say what you've just said. You and I first met on French-interest forums and one of the main reasons I've stopped frequenting the major ones is the avalanche of rehoming pleas which fill their pages. Not being on FB or Twitter I'm spared the lost animal notices, but the fact remains that human beings can't keep having their heartstrings plucked without finding that they can n o longer react as they used to.
ReplyDeleteIn the past I've done my bit by always having pet cats who turned up at the door as either strays or even abandoned, or who came from the local Cats Protection League. Once we stop wandering around so much I plan to do the same again. But respond to every plea, whether for money or for action? I can't do it - no-one can.
That's the nail hit on the head, Perpetua. I think many of us are willing, even trying, to do our bit, but in the end that's all most people can do. I have little truck with adverts expecting to elicit a knee-jerk response, either. In fact, I think it's often downright irresponsible.
DeleteI must admit I do pass on the odd missing one's that are in the area where I used to live on the off chance that someone may have the chance of spotting a lost dog. My friend also fosters GSD's and when she is looking for a forever home I will post for her as most of my friends are local to her too, so again you never know.
ReplyDeleteIt does get a bit daft though when it's for a million miles away and I don't share or pass on any of those, but hand on heart, I would probably do the same if it was for one of mine.
It's primarily the daftness that I am concerned about, I think. Yes, I actively do keep an eye out for the poor lost animal when I see a poster on a local lamp-post or in the window of a local shop. If the animal has wandered off, then there's a small chance I may come across it. I think my problem is more about the internet in general, and social networks in particular, being seen as a great way to spread the word. I have friends on facebook from Australia to Japan, and all over France and the UK. Of course, they in turn have friends who may live locally to the missing animal...but there are also easy ways of spreading the word to just those people. There's a certain laziness to it: it's easy to pass on a message, but it takes time and trouble to tailor that message to the most effective audience.
Delete