By Kimberly Curth Weekend Anchor / Reporter
I’d like to see the city of Mobile and the county make an example of some of these abusers. Serious jail time and serious fines. And I’d like to see a voting record of our state representatives on how they stand on these issues.
If people would call their elected officials and simply ask--"Will you be tough on animal abuse cases? Will you help create laws that punish abusers? Will you prosecute abusers to the fullest extent of the law?” Remember--the mayor, the sheriff, the county commissioners and city councilmen, in many cases the judges, the district attorney, and the state representatives are elected to serve us. But if we don’t let them know our wishes, then we can’t hold them at fault.
Is it mandated by state or county law that all domestic dogs have an annual rabies vaccination? I was under the impression that it was a requirement. I would like to know if the 13 pit bulls (and others) are under routine veterinary care. It seems that the animal cruelty and humane investigators have the authority to verify this. And Carolyn is right. Vets have an obligation to report suspected abuse, neglect and cruelty, just like pediatricians, regardless of how time consuming it may be.
Someone on the forum asked about the veterinarian in this case, and that’s a thread I hope WKRG pursues. I want to know about the kinds of injuries these pit bulls had, and I want to know if the owner got regular care for these animals. I hope WKRG follows up on this. It is certainly within the authority of the cruelty officers to ask these questions.
After talking with a state investigator for cruelty cases, I discovered that some veterinarians are reluctant to label a case “abusive or cruelty” for many reasons. Getting caught up in the justice system, even as a witness, is time-consuming and difficult. And it is often hard to point the finger at someone and say they need to be put in jail. But we rely on these professionals to do this job. Just as we rely on doctors to report child abuse when they find it. It’s a tough job, but that’s part of it.
The whole point here, is that there were dogs so severley injured, that one had to be euthanized the same day. That is sad. I have many animals myself and some are rescues-(11 dogs, 3 cats, 3 horses). Yes it is expensive, but my animals go to the vet if I even remotely think anything is wrong, the same as my kids go to the doctor if they don’t feel well. How can you have dogs that are so injured, that animal control seizes them and then has to euthanize one. Do they ever even look at or interact with their animals? The vet needs to be questioned. What is this persons past history. Have the dogs been even seen by a vet before. I think their is more to this story too, whether the person is fighting the dogs, or just an irresponsible owner-if he can’t properly care for them, then don’t have them. It’s that simple. There are no laws saying you HAVE to own an animal.
Thank you , Carolyn, for your sane commentary. Animals cannot speak for themselves—rather it is up to the species with higher-level brain power (humans) to step in and act on their behalf. I use the term “higher-level brain power” loosely. Many animal owners are neglectful and abusive and I commend those humane officers involved in the seizure of those dogs. I hope they continue to monitor the owners. Something doesn’t “feel” right.
No, this isn’t 1940s Germany, and this isn’t 1700’s France--and animals do have rights in this country whether some people like it or not. When an animal is abused or neglected, the owner is responsible and should be prosecuted. Animals, like children and the elderly, can’t speak out for themselves. So it us up to us.
Look at the facts in this case. 13 pit bulls (is this a registered pit bull rescue? A breeder? Or a fighter? 13 pit bulls with one so severely injured--and untreated--that it had to be destroyed tells me these dogs are not beloved family members.
Several of the dogs had injuries. Were they shot? Were they cut? Were they beaten? Were they fought? Animal control officers don’t sieze animals unless they are in imminent danger. That’s a fact. So these dogs must have been in pretty bad circumstances.
Wake up. Pit bulls, as a breed, are loving dogs. It is the owners who abuse and mistreat them. SUch owners should be jailed.
To geogt72 please control yourself on the forum. I would say that YOU are the idiot in this case, not me. In fact, I have a pit bull. No I do not think that all pit bull owners should have their dogs taken away. I would have to include myself in that mix. I am saying that 13 dogs, several of them injured without any medical care, indicates fighting. I had to go back and read my post. I read it twice and did not see where I had stated that the owners of any animals, much less pit bulls, should be killed. I do think that anyone housing 13 pit bulls, some of whom are injured should be investigated - absolutely. Pit bulls, boxers, dobermans, mixed breeds, poodles - any dog under someone’s care whose injuries are untreated should not have them. Someone with that many pits in their possession should also be investigated because odds are, they’re probably fighting the dogs or selling them to people that do fight them. YOU are the idiot.
I don’t understand why the dogs were returned if several of them have injuries. I own 2 pit bulls myself and they got to the vet whenever they need to. I know how much it costs to take care of 2 dogs much less 13. If he can’t afford to take care of the dogs then he needs to surrender them. Is he a breeder or what? That is a lot of dogs. I sure hope he is not fighting them. I don’t understand why people want to fight dogs. I have heard people say thats what they are for. No they are not. My 2 pits are big babies and wonderful watch dogs and I could never imagine fighting them.
Clementine,1st,you’re an idiot if you think all pits are used for fighting or to assume the owner was fighting his dogs based on an incomplete investigation or news reports that never said he used his dogs for fighting purposes.2nd,comparing dogs to abused childen is “crazy”.3rd,yes,many vets do make house calls(a vet once came to my house to treat a cockitiel i had that was stung by a wasp).Do you think all pits should be taken from their owners and put to sleep just because they are pits and the owners watched in the future,or should we just kill the owners too.Now thats crazy!!!!!!Who should we target next????All pet owners or maybe just uninformed cyber ranters that use poor judgement in their post,lol.Is this America or 1940’s nazi Germany?
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“I’d like to see someone do something with these Jews.” is how it started in Germany!!!!!!Lets just make examples out of anyone one that tells little white lies too....or maybe spitting on the sidewalk.Who much authority should we give to local,state and federal governments????? I do agree that a person should be punished when they violate the law,but this article never said this person did anything wrong other than use “POOR JUDGEMENT”,or did i read a different article than a couple of posters.Were his dogs not returned after an investigation? I have several dogs,one of which is a pit and she gets hurt all the time and its not because of abuse or neglect,its because she plays hard out in the yard chasing squirrels and a skunk scratched her once pretty bad.Even with antibiotics,the wound got absessed before it got better. I guess I need to be watched,too.Yes,dog ownership comes with many responsibilities but so does jumping the gun,demanding punishment, before you know the WHOLE story.