Speaking of Animals
By Les Wood, Nv.
This month’s column is about two mostly unrelated subjects, and a criticism of last month’s column.  First is an update of a column from last fall concerning the dog fighting ring run by football star Michael Vick.  A great deal of media attention was paid to Vick’s sentence and 23 month prison term, but there was almost no mention of the fate of his hapless dogs.

Many people crusaded for the dogs to be euthanized, claiming they were ruthless killers beyond rehabilitation.  In the end, the judge allowed the 47 surviving dogs to be placed with rescue organizations.  22 of them went to Best Friend Animal Sanctuary in Utah, where they’re receiving the best healing care.

All the dogs exhibit post-traumatic stress disorder.  Most are fearful of people; some only wanted to cower and hide.  Best Friends Magazine ran numerous pictures of them and their scarred faces.  You can see the fear in their eyes.  Although they’re very tough-looking (mostly pit bulls), they’re showing affection for their new people.  Dog psychologists are working to help them recover from the abuse and trauma.

A few are still aggressive, but most are responding well to kind treatment.  It’s too soon to know if they can recover enough to be adoptable, but many people have expressed an interest in adopting them.  Whatever happens, they have a lifelong happy home at Best Friends.

Next I’d like to remind animal lovers how important it is to support local humane societies similar to Best Friends.  These are the people who help the animals where we live, usually on a volunteer basis.  Douglas Animal Welfare Group (DAWG) is an admirable example of such an organization.  DAWG’s main focus is helping the Gardnerville shelter’s animals find homes and become more adoptable.  DAWG volunteers walk the dogs, play with the cats, foster animals, and raise funds for medical procedures. 

There are several ways you can help DAWG’s work.  First, look around your home and garage for items to contribute to their annual fund-raiser yard sale, to be held June 7 and 8 from 8 to 4, at 1041 Arrowhead Drive, Gardnerville.  They’re requesting furniture, appliances (no outdated electronics), bicycles, sports equipment, exercise machines, jewelry, tools, etc., but no clothing.  Call Tina at 775-265-3011 for more information.

DAWG also needs volunteers over 18 to help exercise shelter animals.  If possible, consider fostering a dog for a limited time to help alleviate crowding at the shelter.  Call 267-7325 to learn more about dog walking and fostering, or contact the shelter at 782-9061.  Remember, if you’re considering a new pet, the shelter is the first place to look.  And above all, please spay and neuter your pets!

Finally, in the April issue, a reader took exception to my review of the bestseller “The World Without Us”.  Specifically, he debunked something which was actually not discussed by either me or author Weisman—animal mutations caused by nuclear power plants.  Weisman did claim that the Chernobyl meltdown caused mutations, a fact confirmed by every scientist studying the meltdown.

The reader also scoffed at the idea that cell phone towers cause bird deaths.  Presumably there’s a great variation in tower deaths, with more occurring along migration routes.  Since this was a book review, it might be more appropriate to complain to the fact-checking department of the book’s publisher, Kevin Dunne Books.