Each
year Newf Friends and our parent organization HART have animals come
into our care who have been the victims of cruelty in the form of
neglect or cases where dogs have been intentionally harmed. Cruelty
can take many forms -- we see dogs who have been abandoned, starved,
denied veterinary care for injuries or illnesses, shot, beaten,
dragged behind cars, and more. Cruelty can also take the form
of dogs being left outdoors without adequate shelter/food/water,
living in unsanitary conditions, failure to properly groom and care
for pets, and worse.
What
can you do about it?
1.
Get involved. Consider volunteering with your local
rescue group to help animals in need. You can help with
fundraising, fostering, transport, home visits, photographing dogs, or
assisting with social media work.
Support
your local shelter, wildlife rehab centre, spay neuter program and
more.
2.
Take action. Work together with like minded individuals to
bring about positive changes to laws to ensure that animals are better
protected.
On
a municipal level you can contact your municipality to have
regulations put in place around leaving dogs tied outdoors; On
a provincial level you can fight against discriminatory breed
specific bans; On
a federal level, you can advocate for stricter laws around animal
care and harsher penalties for people convicted of animal cruelty.
Join the National Club for your breed of choice (eg. The Newfoundland Dog Club of Canada) and work with them to lobby the CKC to put higher standards in place for breeders.
3.
Don't be a part of the problem. Never purchase a pup from
a puppymill/puppy producer, pet store, puppy broker or BYB. Even
if you feel like you are "rescuing" the dog from a bad
situation, when you purchase from one of these sources you become
part of the problem.
Only support reputable rescues and reputable breeders who maintain high standards of care for their dogs.
Only support reputable rescues and reputable breeders who maintain high standards of care for their dogs.
4.
Speak up. Help prevent cruelty to animals by learning to
identify cruelty, and understanding what steps
you can take to stop it. It is only through action that we
can make a difference. Be the voice for those who can't speak
for themselves.
If
you witness cruelty, don’t turn a blind eye and let the animals
continue to suffer. Report cruelty, and save a life.
5. Make ethical choices. Preventing cruelty extends to all animals, not just domestic pets. Choose cruelty free products whenever you can; if you eat meat or dairy, buy from sources who ethically raise the animals (like local farmers!) Be conscientious--even small changes in your daily habits can have a big impact.
6. Be a good role model. Take great care of your pets - give them lots of love and care, train them well using positive techniques, feed them healthy foods, groom them often, provide regular preventative health care, give them a loving home.
7. Teach your children to be kind to animals. From wildlife to farm animals and family pets, teach your children to be respectful, gentle and compassionate towards animals. They are the next generation of animal lovers.
