www.RogerWendell.com
Roger J. Wendell
Defending 3.8 Billion Years of Organic Evolution^SM

Pets Doing the right thing for other creatures, people and our world!

Click Here for my page on animals...

Click Here for my page on Biology...

Click Here for a YouTube video I took of a Pot-bellied pig that used to be somebody's pet...

Okay, like everybody else I really do love animals despite the emails I've received suggesting otherwise! As a kid, I had the pleasure of caring for all kinds of animals as evidenced by this newspaper article, at left, talking about the rabbits, turtles, snakes, skinks (lizards), and caimans (crocodilian) I was caring for at age 13. In addition, at times, I've also had the regular cats, dogs, ducks, and goldfish pets like everyone else. Nevertheless, one day (early!) I grew up and realized that these different creatures and species weren't put here to entertain, comfort, or please me. All animals, including domestic animals and pets, have an intrinsic value unto themselves and don't need to justify their existence to us for any reason. Additionally, we have an obligation to avoid molesting, disturbing, or killing other creatures unless absolutely necessary. So, that means that some 13 year old kid (or anyone else) doesn't have the right to purchase an endangered species or remove a snake or lizard from its natural habitat just to amuse himself or his friends.

There are other aspects to pet ownership that are destructive as well: Think of how many other animals that need to be killed to add that extra bit of "fish appeal" to cat food or those "beefy" chunks to dog food? And, of course, let's not forget the hundreds of millions of birds and more than a billion small mammals (rabbits, chipmunks, squirrels, and shrews - not to mention endagered species along with countless reptiles and insects) that domestic cats kill across America each year. In my own state, Colorado, dogs seem to do a lot more molesting than killing but the results are equally bad - marmots are constantly being chased on our 14ers, rabbits harassed in the fields, and deer scattered in our open spaces - all for the love of dogs?

Anyway, with a little luck my page might discourage a few people from pet ownership and the damage it creates. I'm not going to hold my breath though - we're a lonely people who crave attention - even if it's from a captive creature that longs to run free!

- Roger J. Wendell
Golden, Colorado

Okay, this series of photos isn't meant to pick on any one particular grocery store or pet food company - it's meant to criticize 'em all!! I've been in grocery stores, pet stores, and department stores just above everywhere and it's always the same - too much expensive, processed, over packaged food for pets while we still have people starving all around the globe! And, of course, let's not forget all the animals that are killed and the damage that's done to our oceans and wilderness in that never ending search to make sure our cats taste a bit of fish or our dogs get some meat flavour in their food!

Look at all these shelves filled with dog, cat and pet food! Stretching nearly the entire length of the store it's clear our pets are over indulged at the expense of so much else in the world! And, this scene is rather typical - like I mentioned before, I've seen shelf after shelf of pet food in stores all over the north American continent, Europe, Australia and dozens of other places in between! It's no wonder so many of our pets are fat and out-of-shape - they're eating too much!!

Pet Prison:

Okay, please remember it's not my intent to pick on any one particular store or business - I'm aiming at 'em all!! I know they believe their intentions to be honorable but look at it this way - some defenseless fish, bird, or small reptile or mammal is yanked from its natural environment and put on display (behind bars!) in hopes of making a sale. Then, if the poor creature is lucky enough not to die in the pet store's cage or aquarium, it'll probably end up being neglected by the aforementioned 13 year old! The animal, the environment, and the 13 years old would all be better off if wild creatures were left in the wild - makes sense, doesn't it!!??

Birds

Fish

Toys

Leashes

Small mammals

Doctors: Pets can be source of staph superbug
(AP) March 12, 2008

"People struggling to get rid of recurrent staph infections might want to consider an often-overlooked source: the family pet."

"Doctors have reported the first transmission of MRSA between a cat a German woman."

A German woman repeatedly battled the same strain of drug-resistant superbug MRSA until her cat was tested and treated. "It's one of the few documented cases of transmission of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus between a person and a cat.

"The otherwise healthy woman had deep abscesses, or boils, all over her back, said Dr. Andreas Sing, a microbiologist at the Bavarian Health and Food Safety Authority in Oberschleissheim near Munich.

"Nasal and other swabs from her husband and two children showed they carried the MRSA germ on skin but had no signs of infection.

"Antiseptic washes and antibiotic nasal ointment killed the germ in the other family members, but the woman was still infected.

"Four weeks after the apparently healthy cat was treated with antibiotics, the woman was free of MRSA and her abscesses had all healed, Sing wrote in a brief report in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine.

"'I think the woman infected the cat and the cat had it and might have reinfected the woman,' Sing said in an interview. Health Library

"Several previous cases of MRSA infections in dogs and their owners have been reported, as well as a cluster in pigs and farmers in the Netherlands, said Dr. Neil Fishman of the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

"He said the problem is more common in people with weak immune systems and urged people to regularly wash up after handling pets."

Dogs are Dangerous!

"Man and woman's best friend bites more than 4.7 million people a year..."

"Each year, 800,000 Americans seek medical attention for dog bites; half of these are children. Of those injured, 386,000 require treatment in an emergency department and about a dozen die. The rate of dog bite-related injuries is highest for children ages 5 to 9 years, and the rate decreases as children age. Almost two thirds of injuries among children ages four years and younger are to the head or neck region. Injury rates in children are significantly higher for boys than for girls."

- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Department of Health and Human Services website, 2008

"My dog is my family member, my dog sleeps in bed with me, my dog is my therapy. And when   people tell me my dog is dangerous because it has a fat head and a big body, that's unfair."          - Adrianne Lefkowitz, opponent of a pit bull ban in Baltimore. NY Times (cache) "Any dog bites me, I'll kill it."          - Phil Hendri, on his national radio show 02/19/2002

Most people, including me and everyone I know, love dogs, cats, and all kinds of other animals. However, not all of us love everything your pet does to us - Think about it, is it really appropriate for your dog, or any other pet, to impose itself on visitors, passersby, or anyone else? No! Here's a list of common complaints from regular folks who have to put up with the obnoxious antics of other people's pets:

• Barking
• "Screeching" in the back alley all night
• Urinating and defecating on other peoples' lawns
• Jumping on other people
• Rubbing their dog/cat genitals on people and children
• Licking our children (especially after the pet has just tongued its own anus)
• Chasing/killing wildlife
• Urinating and defecating in parks and on open space
• Digging holes on other peoples' property
• Slobbering on people
• Chewing and destroying furniture, fencing, and all kinds of belongings
• Killing humans

Pets Killing Humans:

January 2002 Los Angeles Times Owners of Killer Dogs in Court [Diane Whipple was killed by two large Presa Canario dogs as she stood in her apartment hallway]

"The attack occurred Jan. 26 [2001] when Whipple, a 33-year-old college lacrosse coach, was carrying groceries into her sixth-floor Pacific Heights apartment."

"Both dogs suddenly bounded toward Whipple, who was 5-foot-3 and weighed 110 pounds. Bane, 123 pounds, bit Whipple's throat. Hera, 112 pounds, tore at her clothing in a lengthy attack that left Whipple bleeding profusely from a neck wound, authorities said."

"... the animal attacked again, eventually dragging Whipple 20 to 50 feet down the hallway."

NOTE: On March 21, 2002 a California jury found one the owners of the above dogs guilty of murder!

Ten-year-old Alicia Clark was playing at a friend's house when she was mauled to death by six Rottweilers on a February night in 2002. The six dogs, in Elroy, Wisconsin, were euthanized with the owner's permission.

September 2000 The Associated Press Rottweilers ranked as deadliest dogs

"ATLANTA - Rottweilers have passed pit bulls as America's deadliest dog breed..."

"The[se] large dogs were involved in 33 fatal attacks on humans between 1991 and 1998, the American Veterinary Medical Association said."

"Pit bulls, which had been responsible for more deaths than any other breed, were involved in 21 fatal attacks over the same period."

"...overall attacks are on the rise, probably because families are busier, leaving them less time to train their dogs and watch their children."

Dog bite-related fatalities, 1991-98, by breed:

Rottweiler, purebred
----------------------------------------------------------------33
Pit bull-type, purebred
------------------------------------------21
Husky-type, purebred
------------6
Chow chow, purebred
----------5
Wolf-dog hybrid
----------5
German shepherd, purebred
--------4
Malamute, purebred
--------4
Rottweiler, crossbred
--------4

A Backcountry Story
[Note: Darn! I can't remember where I found these exerpts but I'll keep looking until I can
better identify them - probably one of those internet "urban stories" that keeps floating
around but I'll keep looking for the source! Anyway, another good example of how hard dogs
can be on the backcountry and wilderness!]

January 12 was adopt a dog day. I didn't adopt any dogs, but regularly go to the pound and pick up about 10 or so dogs for a trip to the mountains. We hiked in about a mile or so and then I let all the dogs run free. They just love it. They looked just like a pack of wolves when they saw a deer. They must have chased it for 5 miles or so before giving up and coming back to me.

The weather was great and I was on snowshoes. Suddenly some skiers who thought they owned the backcountry started coming down the trail. The dogs didn't like the intrusion into their territory, and started growling. The first skier went to ram them and the dogs went to town. They tore most of his pants off and took one of his poles. It gave me a warm feeling in my heart just watching the look on that guys face as he skied for his life. Hilarious!! I guess that will teach him a lesson!

Anyway, the rest of the day was fairly uneventful. We hiked up to a high alpine lake and the dogs were actually able to catch a few fish that were near the shore. As the day became later, we had to head down. I couldn't find three of the dogs, so I left them up there. They were made for the wilderness anyway. I took the other seven dogs back to the pound and waved good bye to my new friends.

Dogs and Wilderness
Here's what Doggie Piles (an internet dog site at the time) had to say to the K-9 Backpackers Association about the growing craze to have dogs carry backpacks (May 26, 2001):

The wilderness is no place to take your dog or other pet. There isn't much wildness left in our country and dogs will only ruin things further by making too much noise, defecating all over everything and chasing the wildlife. Also, it is unfair for other hikers to have to endure licks from your dog after it just "tongued" its own anus.  Further, people do not appreciate being bit or sexually rubbed by your pet either. Wilderness is the true church - there is no need to be so afraid or alone that you have to drag along a noisy, smelly domestic dog that recieves more receives than most people do in other parts of the world. Please, do the right thing and leave your pet at home!

Sincerely,

Doggie Piles

Links:

1. Animals
2. Backyard Wildlife
3. Climate Change and Global Warming
4. Deep Ecology
5. Evolution
6. Extinciton
7. Fishing follies
8. Hunting
9. Fishing
10. No dog poop sign
11. Patrick Murphy and his Dog Park idea!
12. PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals)
13. Plants
14. Signs of Protest
15. water

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