Years ago, I had to give up my ginger tabby cat, Marnie, because pets were not allowed in the apartment building I was moving into. The intensity of my emotional attachment to Marnie surprised me. This mysterious, unpredictable, seemingly self-absorbed creature had become an integral part of my domestic life. Even though I left her in loving hands at an established group home in southern Maine, I was torn to pieces leaving her behind.
One consolation is that I at least made solid arrangements for her future care. Though not talked about as often as more overt forms of animal cruelty, pet abandonment, whereby the owner or caretaker leaves an animal in a public or private place — indoors or outdoors — with no intention of returning for it and without providing for its future care, is increasingly widespread in America.
There is no national reporting requirement for animal abuse, making it difficult to pin down the number of animals abandoned each year. But according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, or ASPCA, 6 million to 8 million animals enter shelters nationwide annually, including abandoned pets found on the street and animals seized after private abandonment in homes and apartments.
Shelters and rescue facilities increasingly must make the tough decision to “put down” healthy animals because there is no room to keep them and fewer homes in which to place them. People will continue to surrender their pets to shelters for reasons that include pet behavioral problems, someone in the household being allergic or they become ill and can no longer care for them. But more and more it is because of economic reasons, such as home foreclosures, job loss and evictions.
There are a myriad of other reasons why people walk away from their pets, ranging from the owner losing interest or finding a dog too much work, hard to handle and train, to the most frivolous and pernicious so-called Christmas dumping season. People who neglect to spay or neuter their pets encounter unexpected broods that challenge their moral compass. The overbreeding of puppies for profit has resulted in the senseless killings of unsold or imperfect puppies. This haphazard breeding of animals creates a greedy atmosphere that results in unwanted litters that are difficult to care for.
The cost of caring for a pet is well worth considering before taking on a pet. In the cases of dogs and cats, we’re talking about food, veterinarian visits, licenses, optional health insurance, cages, carriers, training, grooming, litter boxes, toys/treats and so on. According to ASPCA estimates, costs of owning and caring for a dog could reach nearly $2,000 a year.
The majority of the states consider abandoning animals, including horses, birds and reptiles, a crime, but anti-cruelty law enforcement is dicey throughout the country. Consequences vary, but New York State uniquely has made it a Class A misdemeanor punishable by a year in jail and/or fines up to $1,000. Unfortunately, even with popularity of ID tags and microchips, it still is notoriously hard to identify and locate owners or caretakers of abandoned animals.
Recently, walking along my residential street on a bitter wintry cold day, I noticed yet another lost pet sign posted on a telephone pole, this time with a picture of a beautiful gray Great Dane that had been lost. I wondered aloud, “How do you misplace a Great Dane?”
I can think of no acceptable rationale for leaving a dependent animal to fend for its own existence. If a potential owner cannot be around often enough to tend to and enjoy the company of a pet, it’s probably best they not adopt one. Companion pets usually cannot make it in the wild or on the streets. Their wildness, as well as their survival and hunting skills, has been bred out of them. That’s probably why they can live amicably among humans. Bringing an animal into your life is to assume a unique bonding that requires an almost super-human ability to care for and protect a dependent creature, one that is not capable of taking independent action as might an ex-lover or friend, that can choose to pack its bags, leave and not return our phone calls.
Leaving a domestic animal to an unknown fate is worse than leaving a loved one, because most of these pets never harmed anyone. They are not ornamental, status symbols or cute playthings to be discarded when an owner get bored or over burdened. They are a living part of all humanity.
Leigh Donaldson is a Portland writer. His writings on international, national and regional politics, business, social issues, history, art, culture and travel have appeared in a number of print and online publications.