Comments so far on my Zeus Post

There's been a couple comments on my Zeus post -

Anonymous said...
To equate the care he received at the SPCA to the abuse he suffered at Celtic Pets is ABSURD!

You have lost all credibility in my eyes now. I had thought your opinions informed and informative.. but no longer.

One has to look at things from Zeus's perspective. Do you think HE sees a big difference between the cage at the back of the Dartmouth shelter SPCA and the cage at Zonda's kennel? They are equally confining. They are equally absent of HUMAN BEINGS probably 80% of the time. They have no grass or fresh air or love or companionship or someone looking out for him. The cage at the Dartmouth SPCA shelter has someone perfunctionarily cleaning out the shit and piss a couple times a day if he needs it. The Dartmouth SPCA shelter has someone taking him out for a pee and poop break a couple times a day - sometimes if a volunteer comes by to do it, and if not - he gets let out just long enough so that someone can clean his cage.

That is looking at his situation from ZEUS'S perspective. What kind of a life do you think that is? I personally think that's a pretty crappy life - and really not much better than the life he had down in Cape Breton at Celtic Pets. So Anonymous - you can continue to believe that I've lost all credibility in your eyes and that my opinions were informed and informative but after today they no longer are - but I believe that I write these posts not so that I can APPEAR a certain way - but I write these posts so that I can EFFECT a certain change.

I don't want any more dogs to suffer what Zeus has gone through. Zeus should have IMMEDIATELY gone out into foster care. 3 years in a cage was long enough. And if I for one hadn't thought that he had died back when he did - I would have moved heaven and earth to have made sure that happened. But unfortunately I was misinformed into believing that he was dead. So he continued to be hidden at the shelter, for whatever reasons. And I only found out on Tuesday that he was possibly still alive.

On Tuesday when I found out there was a possibility he was still alive, I started asking around - and several people said - yes, they heard he was probably still alive - and I was livid. How could these people KNOW he was alive and not do anything about it? How could they have let the shelter keep this animal in a cage and not do anything about it?

Which leads me to the next comment I wanted to talk about:

Anonymous said...
If you are so against the SPCA Joan why were you even in there today! Has it been too long since you have stirred up shit for them?Is it too much for you to bare when things quite down? I am very surprised that you even got inside the doors without being thrown out. Have you apologized to the SPCA for posting your bullshit gossip that he was dead in the first place? Did you apologize to Zeus today for spreading the word that he was dead before you had all the facts straight? Did you apologize to all the people that you upset claiming that he was dead when he was very much alive and well? Did you make sure that you called Zonda today to give her the good news? You two are good friends aren't you? let everyone know that about you!!POST THAT JOAN!!!!

I want to make it clear - I am NOT against the SPCA, and never have been. I am against the way the NS SPCA is being run, and the perceived abuse of the powers at the top. When I was at the shelter today the staff were super friendly, nice, and I had an excellent experience. They seemed to really care about all the animals that were there and were trying to find the best animals for the people that were coming to look at the cats and dogs. You could tell that they all cared about the animals at the shelter. The front line workers are all awesome.

And Anonymous - I think I am a lot less famous than you make me out to be. No one recognized me. Maybe I just have one of those faces that blend in, maybe I just got lucky.

But the reason I went there today was because when I heard that Zeus was alive and I heard he was on the adoption floor - I HAD to do something about it. I am not one of those people who can just say - "oh well, that's too bad he was left at the shelter all this time, I wonder what's going to happen to him now". It BEHOOVED me to go and see him in the flesh. So that's what I did - I was prepared to be kicked out and to make a scene - but I had to go. And I did.

I don't do this for my own personal glory - who would need this stress in their life? The hate mail? These kinds of comments? I do it because I don't want Zeus to suffer one more day in a cage. Period.

I want positive change at the NS SPCA.

In a press release on May 27, 2008 Pam Keddy said -

"The NS SPCA is committed to humane treatment of animals and we look
forward to working closely with the Department of Agriculture to put
regulations in place under the new Act to ensure a better quality of
life for our best friends" states Keddy.

I think that the Dartmouth NS SPCA shelter should live up to that paragraph - humane treatment of animals.

As to my friendship with Zonda MacIsaac - a lot of people were friends with her prior to the seizure of her animals. Why am I thing only one now being accused of that fidelity? And as to my current status with her - she has no friends in this province because of this debacle - and you can draw your conclusions from this, Anonymous. I don't know who YOUR friends are - but I can assume they are with people I PERSONALLY would never associate with myself.