If I were to say to you, Did you hear about that animal abuse/neglect case in ________? Where does your mind immediately take you to? Images of poor puppies in cramped/hot/cold/unclean conditions? Thoughts of unwanted cats being tossed on the street to fend for themselves? Maybe you imagine a Dog Fighting club with all of the horrors and atrocities that go with it? While all of these are examples of animals being abused, neglected, or otherwise mistreated, abuse is not limited to the cute and cuddly. What if I were to tell you that many, many people, perhaps even some people that you know very well, were guilty of animal abuse/neglect.....and they, or those close to them DONT EVEN KNOW IT. Every day I see it, in every town, in every state, in every pet store. I see it in the eyes of snakes that are kept in far to small an enclosure. I see it in the tattered shed skin of a lizard who is badly dehydrated. I see it in the pet store when somebody decides to purchase a snake that they know nothing about. As a reptile keeper I hear the same thing on almost a daily basis. Hey did you hear about that snake in _________ that got out and ate the family pet? or You have snakes AND kids??? What a dangerous combination!! The truth is that all of these stories of bad snakes, are actually stories of bad people. Snakes dont go bad, people go stupid. I cannot tell you the number of times I have walked into a Snake Guys house expecting to see well kept, healthy snakes, only to be greeted by a sight which turns my stomach. Too often I see tropical snakes and lizards in enclosures that do not hold proper humidity. I see 16 foot long pythons in cages so small the snake has only the room to coil up. I see arboreal (tree dwelling) lizards and snakes in plastic totes only inches high. All the while these people insist that their snakes are happy and healthy. It is time for me to say something. It is time people became aware of the damage they are causing. The abuse and neglect of reptiles is a HUGE, and still growing problem. You can see story after story after story of this dog or that cat being abandoned, or abused. You see story after story of people being arrested for mistreating the cute and the cuddly. What stories then are shared about reptiles? Pet snake eats baby. Family terrified after finding snake in toilet. Nobody cares about the neglect or abusive living conditions of these animals. When a snake dies because of poor living conditions nobody cares, but let a puppy become mange and flea infested and everybody loses their minds, as well they should. Abuse is abuse is abuse is abuse. Regardless of species, fluffiness, cuteness, or desirability. Its time we, the people with a conscience. We the people who care about animals. We those who are sick of people mistreating animals of all sizes, shapes and species, stand up and say no more. -Deek-
Posted on: Thu, 19 Jun 2014 16:56:41 +0000
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