Occasionally, I find
myself scrolling down the homepage of Facebook, and I come across the most
pitiful photograph of a poor, emaciated, badly-mangled dog or cat.
And it absolutely tears
me to shreds emotionally.
Perhaps I’m just a sensitive
kind of guy, (and that has to be okay), but I can’t quit thinking about that poor
creature for hours. And every time I see a photo of one of these creatures, I
find myself wishing that whomever posted it had not posted it. And it occurs to
me that it is enough that such a travesty as neglect and dog fighting exists,
and I am well aware of this unutterable savagery, without it being visited on
me without so much as a warning that…
“What you are about to
see will absolutely ruin the remainder of your day.”
This last photograph was
one of the worst of its kind, and made me question whether I really wanted to
remain on Facebook. A poor neglected pit bulldog sitting in the center of a
doggie cell. His snout and forehead are missing chunks of hair and flesh, that
massive head is bowed, and the most poignant depression fills up his listless
eyes.
It seemed obvious to me
that the pitiful beast has been used for dog fighting, and either thrown away
when he had run his course, or has been rescued by authorities far too late to
do him any good. And not unlike a condemned man waiting for his execution date,
there is little or no doubt that he will, ultimately, be consigned to this same
fate.
Pt. 2
I have seen them out there “in the
wild” roaming the highways and byways of this world; animals that have simply
been thrown away.
In one case I was walking along a
state highway in the wee hours of the morning, as is often my habit, and I came
upon a little kitten sitting on the concrete base of a light pole. You’ve heard
the old adage that if you find a turtle on a fencepost, it didn’t get there by
himself. Well, neither did this kitten; since the base of the pole stood about
three feet above the ground. I retrieved the tiny creature and gave it to my
sister. The little fella is big, and strong and absolutely thriving today.
Another time I was biking on the same
highway at the same time of the morning, and I discovered an emaciated
mini-doberman tied to a light post. Once I picked him up, he would not be
denied. He held onto me for dear life, ‘til we arrived at my home. Later that
day, I placed him in the care of a no-kill shelter.
There is a photo that has been making
its way around social media, apparently staged, of a dog tied to a tree, and a
car driving away in the distance. Well, I can tell you that real people are, inexplicably,
guilty of doing this very thing. And more often, than not, they simply dump the
dog or cat in a forest, or in some other secluded place, and drive away. Almost
as bad, many people surrender their aged pets to local shelters and drive away;
knowing that they will never be re-adopted, but rather, euthanized in short
order. These same folks are prone to show up at this same, or a different
shelter in short order, and adopt a younger pet.
As scripture puts it,
“There things ought not to be.”
Pt. 3
I am convinced that there is
absolutely nothing you or I can do to instruct, inform or enlighten such
people, and that all the photographs in the world aren’t going to change their
behavior pattern. They are cruel and heartless people; (with the possible
exception of my previous example, when circumstances beyond someone’s control
forced him or her to do what they would have preferred not to do).
Speaking of that pitiful old, sick,
sad and bewildered creature I described which sat in the middle of a shelter
cage, I pray for him and other dogs and cats, and what we commonly refer to as ‘pets’
on a daily basis.
There is a rather singular scripture
in Psalm 36:6 which reads,
“You (meaning God) preserve man and animals,
alike.”
I have taken this scripture to mean
that not only has mankind been afforded an eternal soul, but that, at least
when it pleases Him, God has the wherewithal to carry the spirit of a deceased
animal to heaven.
I have asked my dear Savior to allow
me to see my beloved pooches again one day; (three of four which have
predeceased me). And it occurs to me that if any animals deserve this privilege,
it is those which have been neglected, abused and abandoned by people in whom
they had every reason to invest their trust.
I pray that I will see that pitiful
old decimated, and depressed dog to which I previously alluded in heaven. (And
I think I have every reason to believe that I will).
I can just see him now, sleek and
strong, with vibrant eyes, and exuding the kind of joy and confidence he never experienced
in this life.
by William McDonald, PhD. Copyright Pending
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