Incessant Abandonment
of Dogs and Cats Present in Hill County
By Sarah Bennett
This
is the face of “Hope.” She was within
hours of dying from exposure and starvation. (she was one-third her normal body
weight). “Hope” was already hampered in her survival by only having one eye and
was found disoriented and dehydrated, but happy to meet her rescuers.
This heartless abandonment of a living creature is but one example of the
inhumane and criminal action of hundreds of individuals who abandon their dogs and
cats each year in Hill County. It begs
the question: What are these people thinking will happen when they abandon a domesticated
companion animal in the wild? Survival
statistics for these pets are slim and for the very few who do survive, minimum
care is provided such as vaccinations or sterilization.
It is estimated that over 1,000 dogs and cats in Hill County are
being abandoned each year—fueling our existing pet overpopulation issue because
of dogs’ and cats’ exponential reproduction rate. Besides
being merciless when abandoning a dog or cat, a criminal law (Penal Code 42.09)
has been violated which could result in up to $4,000 fine and/or year in jail. How do we correct this continued merciless
and irresponsible behavior of abandoning pets?—we simply start with an animal shelter
that would support a proactive county animal control program.
Take another look at the face of “Hope”—she is a living symbol of what happens when
we ignore pet overpopulation. Support
the efforts of Hill County Paw Pals to bring positive change by facilitating the
installation of a county animal control program. Please
visit with us at our next public meeting at 6:30pm Thursday, April 3rd
in the Bullock Room of Hill College Cafeteria in Hillsboro—our guest speaker will
be Michelle Carlson, Attorney at Law, who will present a program on the legal liabilities
of pet overpopulation. Call (254) 580-0679
or email hcpawpals@yahoo.com for more information.