Rescue Journal

beating a dead dog to death

Carol · Feb. 9, 2010

ok...it is a horrible old saying...and actually was it a "dead horse"???
but the feeding frenzy going on around the whole rescue/broker thing is getting a bit too much.

i in no way support any rescue who tosses dogs on a plane and then into an adoption fair within hours of arrival. i in no way support selling innocent animals here/there and wherever to whoever has $400 in their pocket to pay. i in no way especially support anyone who places dogs in homes for any reason..profit or mistaken motives and then refuses to rescue them again when they end up in the pounds.

backyard breeders cause far less damage cuz they are only sending out a few litters each year to uncertain lives....brokers can import apparently hundreds upon hundreds to send out in the same time frame, everywhere that they possibly can.

but...the cause will lose momentum and intital support if it takes on the appearence of a singular witch hunt without any real concern for and why and how often and how much crap can actually be posted in as many places as possible....and a lack of differentiating between real communication and the personal stuff which no one gives a shit about..the ISSUES that brings animals to a place of real harm are the issues to be brought forward.

here is a hint NOT to lose credibility and start accumulating an avalanche of craziness to bury any legit social issue..human or animal...make your plan...keep it reasonable, simple and clear and concise...keep it legal and responsible and rational....remove the volatile emotional component, get away from personal, individual stuff as fast as you can and focus on a limited number of eye popping specific and important issues instead....and refuse to get drawn in to proving your righteousness over and over and over again by trying to keep bringing more and more "evidence" about a "person" vs the issues to the forefront of the public eye.

i would think that certain brokers who currently represent themselves as rescues are pretty much toast now IF folks don't engage in muddying up the playing field with adding a whole bunch of extra useless stuff to keep the frenzy moving along and building into a total blood bath....people are going to get uncomfortable with the unending apparent violence and lack of focus of the attack and stop wanting to think about it at all.

responsible rescue advocasy is not interested in burying individual "people"...we are interested in forever burying all types of uncaring/unsafe/disrespectful and profiteering animal exploitation...that is the issue...we need to keep our eye on the "real" rescue ball not the actual individuals proverbial funerals...let them bury themselves....they are quite capable of digging their own graves.

Comments

sheila

I agree with you because I was just thinking the same thing yesterday night while reading all those posts on you tube one after the other - to keep posting in that manner makes "the good" guys start to look looney.

Charlotte

I really shouldn't comment since I'm not there & don't really know what you're talking about (!). but. If I get your point at all, it's something that's been on my mind lately, but in regards to groups that I support.
I became a member of Peta manymanymany years ago. They were the first 'animal rights' group I'd heard of, and they opened my eyes to - well - Everything. I was a proud card-carrier for ages; then they got Strange. Asking a town out east to change their name from Hamburg to Veggieburg, etc. Suddenly their message was obscured by all the silliness. They went 'off message,' and just became a joke.
I'm still a member (but don't admit it out loud anymore), because they still have some things that they're good at. Many people hate them because of their views on certain issues (understandable), but many *more* people hate them because "they're Kooks". I can't imagine how much more good they could've done had they just focused on the Big Picture, and not devolved into saving flies and whatnot. Can't imagine how many more people might've listened to them, might've joined the cause, if they weren't advocating killing feral cats, protecting bees from exploitation and various other things.
Same thing applies to pettiness in smaller groups closer to home. Telling someone that X-shelter is bad because they don't do Y for the animals is enough. Some people will consider it, believe it and act accordingly. If that's followed by 'and she's a bitch and has bad breath' ... suddenly you doubt their motives, sincerity, competence - and may just side with X-shelter, since they're being persecuted by a nut with an axe to grind.
Too bad that greed and human egos can't be set aside for the Greater Good. (apologies for going on too long.)

Lori Paul

Turns out we have a broker out here in Chilliwack, who is bringing hundreds of puppies into Canada from the states and who is selling these puppies legally and with a licence from my local city hall so there is no way to curb this import even with the knowledge that this guy is not at all concerned who he sells to, does not worry about any vetting
beyond the first set of vaccinations and doesn't care about spaying or neutering. He sold at discounted rates through the holiday season and no doubt made those spur of the moment sales that almost always end up with an 18 month old puppy dumped at the pound. I am loathe to bring this guy any more media attention than his weekly 8 inch ad column does as I fear it'll give some local idiots the idea to get a pair for breeding and set up their own business...hey! it's just too easy. Even the SPCA, who I admire generally, did not return my email asking what they knew about this operation. It's discouraging.

Cam

well said.