It's wonderful* - 100 sleds dogs were "slaughtered" - as the CTV National News have tagged it - and it's all over the national and regional news, Facebook, and Twitter.
It seems that 100 healthy sled dogs were killed because a tourist business had slowed down after the Olympics - so they were considered an extraneous business expense and needed to be disposed of.
The problem was it caused the employee who had to fulfill the job function an occupational illness - and a radio station in British Columbia found the "Workplace BC" documents that the employee had filed detailing the employees account of his post traumatic stress disorder - and now the British Columbia SPCA has become involved and said that what took place could fall under criminal code violations because of what the employee has described -
"In WorkSafe BC documents, the worker describes chasing after a dog that survived a shot to the face: "Although she had the left side of her cheek blown off and her eye hanging out, he was unable to catch her."
Another apparently dead dog was dumped into the grave. "‘Nora,' who he had shot approximately 20 minutes before, was crawling around in the mass grave he had dug for the animals. He had to climb down into the grave amidst the 10 or so bodies already there and put her out of her misery."
According to the claim, the dogs panicked as they watched their compatriots being killed, and attacked the worker as he finished his job
At one point during the slaughter, he ran out of ammunition and had to kill an aggressive dog with a knife.
"By that point he wanted nothing more than to stop the ‘nightmare' but he continued because he had been given a job to finish," according to the documents."
I think it's absolutely fabulous* that this story is getting so much press - that the killing of healthy, animals by inhumane means is being seen for what it is - unnecessary, archaic - and criminal - and that the people who did it need to be called out and punished.
The sad thing is that this is not an isolated situation - only the fact that this is getting national press makes it peculiar.
In 2008 - right here at home - 175 dogs were all shot in the head - in exactly the same manner - for basically the same reason - because they were no longer necessary, had become disposable - Chapman Kennels in New Brunswick -
And NOBODY cared - it didn't make any press except for one line in a local newspaper there that went out of business the next week - it was a throwaway line in an article that said -
“The company that my wife sold the dogs to weren’t going to buy puppies. She had around 425 dogs here and no market for them.”
Chapman said they’ve had to sell the remaining dogs at reduced prices, or give them away, and euthanized about 175 of them.
And by euthanized - that meant SHOOTING them.
And nobody cared.
175 dogs were all shot in the head in New Brunswick in 2008 - and it didn't make the news - so I am SO GLAD that these 100 sled dogs are making national news today - maybe it means that the companion animal agenda has moved ahead in the last two years and the national media is now more willing to cover these types of stories.
Maybe it's because the news media on the West Coast is more savvy to these kinds of stories - I don't know - but for whatever reason - I am very glad that these 100 dogs have not died in vain - that their deaths have not gone by unnoticed.
I'm sure that there won't be any successful criminal charges laid or convicted - we haven't come that far yet - this IS Canada after all - but at least we are able to start conversations with each other and talk about the fact that MORALLY - we all know how wrong this was. Because it WAS...... and so is keeping 300 dogs in a yard just to drag people around on a sled.... but that's another post, isn't it.
* By using the terms wonderful and fabulous - I'm not saying that these dogs' deaths are wonderful and fabulous - I am saying that the press coverage that they are getting is wonderful and fabulous. I wanted to make that clear - if that bit of clearance needed to be made.
I'm still trying to grasp the fact that this guy is now getting a tax handout through disability because of the stress his own horrible act caused him. This story really puts a shadow on Canada and specially what i thought was a great Olympics for us - truly truly disgusting.
ReplyDeleteJoan, given how we treat animals in our factory farms, I don't know why we're so surprised when dogs are treated the same way.
ReplyDeleteI don't understand why we reconcile our outrage over these poor dogs and those other innocent animals.
I cannot get the image of that one dog crawling in the mass grave out of my mind.
OMG we can be so horrid to our fellow creatures.
Sybil
My thoughts exactly Tristan. BooHoo for the person who did the shooting, because someone told him to. Not a penny he should get.
ReplyDeleteBut that's one of the problems with humanity - mindless obedience and lack of accountability for one's actions. It always someone else fault.
I sure hope society at large was jolted somewhat into the reality of how many animals are forced to live - and die, and demand changes.
One of the reasons I think this story has resonated with the public is that it has a connection to the Olympics - and I cringe when I now see the ads for the upcoming SPECIAL to highlight the games(not against the Olympics or the athletes!) but the spin and businesses around this event is why this slaughter is in the press. BUT like you Joan I am disturbed that the BLOODY BUSINESS of PUPPY MILL BREEDING AND BROKERING, let alone our laws that allow for chaining etc. and that I could legally shoot my own dog in the head because I did not want it anymore has not had the same media focus. I am hoping that the lens that is now on the LACK of HUMANE LAWS makes the average Joe Q Public finally see that we need changes STAT.
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