Mary Lou Seymour is a long-time libertarian activist and author. She lives in South Carolina. CLICK HERE FOR RATIONAL REVIEW NEWS DIGEST CLICK HERE FOR THE LIBERTY ACTIVIST BLOG SUPPORT OUR
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of the Week Those of you who know me (in cyber or meatspace) probably know I'm a "cat person." Well, last Sunday evening I was adopted ... by a Great Dane, who appeared in the woods behind my house, followed my husband home and collapsed at my doorstep. She was filthy, starving, looked like a concentration camp victim, was covered in fleas, had sores all over her almost hairless body. She couldn't stand up ... but she could still wag her tail and answer to the name Spot. I've adopted many a stray kittie over my lifetime; one of my standing jokes is that St. Francis (patron saint of animals) has put a "mark" on my house (like the hoboes used to mark houses in the Depression.) Well, this time, St. Francis had outdone himself. Not only a dog, but the biggest dog I'd ever seen, and in such terrible condition. Knowing that calling the government shelter for any animal other than a cute little kitten or puppy means almost certain euthanasia, and, our local "no kill" shelter only takes animals after they are stabilized, I really had no option. So, now I'm a "dog person," and am happy to report that a week later Spot is doing well, is growing back some hair, filling out, and is ready for her first trip to the vet for shots, heartworm testing etc. Spaying her will have to wait 'til she's in better condition, of course. Anyway. After spending
almost all my free time this past week doctoring on Spot
and restoring her faith in humans (yes, she's been
abused, she flinches and cowers if she hears a raised
voice or you move your hands too quickly), I thought for
this week's action, I'd jump on one of my "pet"
topics: supporting private animal rescue efforts. discuss this
article at How many stray cats and dogs do you see, usually starving and mangy, rummaging through trash cans or slinking in the shadows? Every sign for "free puppies" or ad for "free kittens" you see, every stray cat or dog, is another indication that too many folks in this country, which prides itself on self reliance and taking responsibility for our actions, do exactly the opposite. I'm sure I don't need to "preach" responsibility to libertarians, who, after all, are supposed to be firmly behind the principle of "with freedom comes responsibility." I'm sure all of you do spay or neuter your pets and take care to find them a good home if you move to a "no pets allowed" environment. But there are thousands or perhaps millions of pet "owners" out there who can't be bothered to take the time and minimal funds needed to ensure that their pets are taken care of in a responsible manner, and either discard the results of their irresponsibility, or, at best, put a "free kittens" sign in their yard or take the unwanted discards to the government animal control shelters, so the rest of us will have to pay for their irresponsibility. For a look at some "reasons" people give for taking their pet to a shelter, see "Why are dogs abandoned?" from the Akita Rescue Foundation. The increasing burden put on the government shelters by these irresponsible pet owners is causing calls for undesirable government intervention, such as mandatory licensing. Due to the increasing number of uncaring, irresponsible pet owners and the sheer volume of unwanted pets "dumped" on the government "animal control" shelters, the government shelters have little choice but to kill those animals who are unadoptable after a certain length of time. Sometimes animals are killed the same day they are brought in by their "owner." For a truly heart wrenching story, from the pet's point of view, see "How Could You?" (which I found cross posted to a Great Danes Rescue forum.) This is where we can take action. There are private organizations, in almost every town, that operate "no kill" shelters. These organizations rescue unwanted animals, give them medical attention (including spaying/neutering), "foster" them with responsible, caring individuals, and offer them for adoption. These organizations also may offer "TNR" (trap-neuter-return) campaigns, where adult stray animals are captured, neutered, and then released again. Though not as desirable as adoption, TNR efforts at least function as humane animal control, helping to prevent the stray animal population from continuing to explode. This week, I'm asking you to take action to help those millions of unwanted animals who have been discarded and to support the efforts of the "no kill" private shelters throughout our country. You may not be able to adopt the next Spot that collapses in your yard, but, you may be able offer to "foster" an unwanted pet until it can be adopted. You may be able to volunteer to transport the animals to the vets who spay/neuter pro bono, or help find vets and vet techs to volunteer their services. You may be able to participate in (or start) a "TNR" (trap-neuter-return) campaign to effectively reduce stray animal population by sterilization -- not euthanasia. At the very least, you can donate time, money, or even just a bag of dog or cat food to your local private shelter. Even if you personally don't "like animals," this is a community problem caused by irresponsibility and government "nannyism'" which you can help alleviate by private action. To find a private shelter in your community, Feline Rescue has a listing of shelters worldwide, as well as resources for low cost spay/neuter, and Best Friends Network offers networking to help you find others in your community who are helping homeless pets. Pets911 has a database of public and private shelters throughout the US. Best Friends is the nation's largest sanctuary for abused and abandoned cats and dogs and other animals from all over the country (there are never fewer than 1,800 there on any given day). Best Friends works together with members of Best Friends and other animal welfare organizations to help set up spay/neuter, shelter, foster, and adoption programs in their own neighborhoods. If there are no private shelters in your community, you can get together with your friends and start one. There are numerous online resources to help, such as the excellent resources from Best Friends Network, including "How to start your own sanctuary," "How to start a spay/neuter day," "How to organize an adoption day" and more. There is also a section of articles on "What one person can do" that may give you even more ideas. For inspiration, take a look at Freedom Farm Animal Sanctuary, a libertarian-operated program in Tennessee. The folks at this sanctuary truly show how you can demonstrate your commitment to private action to solve community problems. So, for this week's action, I urge you to show by your actions in your own community that libertarians do indeed practice what we preach by supporting private shelters and animal rescue efforts. Not only will you be helping to rescue the throwaways of our society, and to reduce a public health hazard by private action, you will gain a lot of personal satisfaction and some new friends, both human and animal. Til next week, For Freedom Mary Lou Additional Links: Alley Cat Allies -- PS: Don't forget to share your thoughts and actions with me, if you'd like me to share them with others, I'll post them to the Liberty Activist Blog. Several new posts there from last week, including a great idea concerning flag flying! (a new updated version of the Bennington Flag, anyone?). PPS: Thanks again to all of you great folks who send in donations to keep Liberty Action of the week online! I don't make much money from these columns, but it sure helps to know folks are reading and appreciating them. Your donation in the "virtual hat" (PayPal, e-gold) may make the difference in keeping LAotW on the Net. Donations are NOT "tax deductible," I am not and never will be approved by the governmentt as a "tax exempt educational institution" (and neither will the organization that publishes my column, Rational Review). We're still working on getting the activist directory back online after the server crash, and, I'm working on a few more "premium" ideas. Stay tuned! |
