Soap Box: Pets, Hurricanes, and People

Today we introduce a new feature, the “Soap Box”. This is where I will go on a literal rant about something that, in my humble opinion, any decent person should agree with me is just plain wrong. Soap Box topics generally make me angry, and I have little to no tolerance for the guilty parties. Soap Box topics cause me to believe that people suck. While very curmudgeonly and very opinionated, I am not prone to violence, nor do I endorse violence in most any individual circumstances (excepting self-defense, then it’s expected). So, here we go…

In the Houston area during Hurricane Harvey many people have had to evacuate their homes. Many of those people have bent over backward to save their pets, as well. Some of the faces of the forlorn pets is heartbreaking. People, even most kids, know and can comprehend what is going on. That doesn’t make it better, per se, but they get it. Animals, on the other hand, essentially have the relative safety and security of their world turned upside down. They’re scared, they’re tired, they simply do not know what’s going on. Add in domestication and they are unusually dependent on us for their survival.

Then we have the dregs of society. The ones who define “people suck”. Two recent examples involve dogs. In one example a dog was left in rising flood waters tied to a tree. In the other example two dogs were left in rising flood waters in crates on a porch. Who the hell does that?!?

Just thinking about it makes me livid.

Really, what kind of selfish low-life person does that? Personally, I cannot imagine leaving my pet behind. A pet would be second only to people, of course, and if I absolutely had to make a choice, I’d have to go with people first, but I’d do whatever humanly possible to save my pet, as well.

And I’m not so much ranting about leaving the pets behind. I don’t know the people’s situation, and maybe they had to make an either/or decision. That’s one thing. It’s quite another to leave them in a situation where they are likely to suffer a horrible death by drowning. If you have to leave a pet behind, ok, but leave them free so that they at least have a chance to run and/or swim to safety and a chance at survival. Only a sadistic jerk would not allow them that chance.

In both of these examples someone happened by and saved them. Those people deserve eternal admiration. But it shouldn’t have to have happened that way in the first place.

/rant off

There is no humor in this post, as that wouldn’t be appropriate, but true to my general purpose, it needed to be said.

 

3 thoughts on “Soap Box: Pets, Hurricanes, and People

  1. You personally already know I completely agree with you. We ranted about this together. I then read this and teared up. I can not stand the thought of those poor babies! I agree, well ranted!

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