Amy’s Gripping Commentary

An overwhelming number of animal hoarding, cruelty, neglect, and abandonment cases have come across my email in just the past week. I have actually been unable to follow all that is going on because there are so many. And I mostly hear about rabbit cases! Dogs and cats face this crap in even higher numbers.

Close to home, Fort Wayne ACC has contacted us and other local rescues to take some of the 53 animals seized (one account says 58) in a cruelty/hoarding case where the animals were kept in a basement, from rabbits to dogs to lizards to hamsters. The house was then condemned. We (IHRS) have taken in a couple of rabbits from FWACC.

Twelve guinea pigs are part of the confiscation, adding to the other ~150 or so in rescues from Indy to Chicago. 150 homeless guinea pigs right here!! I’m adopting one and donating to another group. Some of the piggies are listed at Petfinder, and for the lame excuse “I only want a baby pig,” keeping the pet stores in business and the problem cycling, yes, there are even babies in local rescues.

119 rabbits, mostly lops, were seized from a breeder in Tennessee as part of a hoarding/cruelty case (which also included 30 dogs). Amazingly, rescues around the country (including one of our fosterers) were able to step in and all rabbits have already left the original shelter, which had no way to house and care for so many. Happy news, right? Well, there’s a brief article about ten of the rabbits who were accepted by another shelter, where many breeders have stepped in with cranky comments, not to mention the hateful “Hitler” emails to a shelter staffer. Note there are also positive comments at the article from folks more of my mindset, and this is all much like the smaller scale crankiness that occurred on this blog as I documented our volunteer work during a similar case.

360 horribly abused animals, including 50 rabbits, are being cared for in a Missouri shelter. From dogs to donkeys to rats, this case is really revolting.

Nearly 30 rabbits have been caught so far that had been running loose in south San Francisco the past few weeks. Many are now being euthanized as the shelters run out of space. Rescues are scrambling to place as many as they can.

Buffalo, NY SPCA, a few weeks ago: 46 rabbits, 10 birds, three cats seized from a home, owner charged with cruelty. Two dead rabbits were also found. Thirty rabbits still remain at the shelter and no one from the public can surrender any more as a result.

Best Friends has partnered with shelter investigators to remove 1,000 mostly small-breed puppies from a West Virginia puppy mill.

Then there’s the guy from Illinois who was arrested for beating a cocker spaniel with a hammer after its owner paid him $25 to kill it; his dogs are now sheltered and the ones who lived need new homes. Apparently he has also been paid by other people to perform this service. And there’s the woman in the Bronx who was arrested for bringing her 25 cats to the ASPCA in sealed plastic bins in her trunk. Many died.

In many of these cases, the shelters must care for the animals while court cases are pending, causing a huge drain on resources (shelter staff and volunteers, supplies, veterinary care, and of course funding). Please keep these animals in your thoughts and if you find yourself in a position to help, donations or time are always appreciated (and of course adoption of available animals!). Some days it seems so overwhelming I don’t know what to do. Even if you are far from these cases, helping your local shelter or rescue helps them all, especially as space is made in one spot that can relieve the overcrowding at another facility.

You can even donate to the ASPCA’s emergency hay fund for horses who are displaced as hay prices have climbed.

More info can be found at the national House Rabbit Society website and through the links above. HRS has an emergency fund to which anyone can donate online or by mail. The typical recipients include some of the rabbit cases described above.

All pictures came from the linked shelters and my accounts are from public information or permissioned email lists.

Hooray for Annie and Lucy, two dogs who were adopted by my family members this month.

Shame on anyone breeding or buying while shelter pets die.

This week marked two years since I stopped eating meat. So, time for my annual tally!

In 733.71 days, you have saved:
0.2760 cows
60.599 chickens
0.6733 pigs
2.0199 turkeys
0.1615 ducks
114.46 fish

Total: 178.19 animals
Thank you

See what 178.19 animals looks like

And then there was this cute popup!

This comes from a veg*n calculator, and is discussed a bit here.

That two-thirds of a pig reminds me of an irritating ad insert in the paper the other day by some Indiana pork producers’ group. It said, roughly, Indiana Pork Feeds Every Hoosier, 5 Million People Around the World, and 15 Million Americans!

Sorry, folks, you don’t feed me. And there might be a few equally irritated Jews and Muslims in this state. Their website states the group “provides the pork needs for every man, woman, and child” in Indiana, which is better phrased since at least that allows as how I might not have any pork needs. I won’t bother giving them a link and increasing their traffic.

A fur-free Olympian has been a bit controversial, but I gotta say, she’s got the abs needed for her lines of work:

Thanks for allowing me to rant today! Back to my tofu.

We’ve got finger-pointing, understaffing, underfunding (not even for food?), no accountability, bad public attitude, and where does it all lead? The animals suffer. Tonight’s board meeting at Indianapolis Animal Care and Control ought to be interesting. The Indy Star describes a complaint lodged against the city pound (the reader comments are always fascinating). The complainants make their case here as well. Yes, there are probably agendas all over the place, but the animals shouldn’t suffer as a result.

What is wrong with people?

…cats with paws slammed/stuck in the door of their cage in the receiving room overnight; a euthanasia procedure gone wrong causing a puppy to suffer a slow, painful 20-minute death; failure to rinse bleach solution from food and water bowls forces animals in the receiving room to drink from bleach-tainted water bowls if they wish to have any water at all; puppies and dogs kept in the receiving room (where cats are housed) are in cages that are too small, where they invariably step in and knock over or contaminate their food and water. They are seldom, if ever walked, so end up defecating and urinating in the cage (which is typically only cleaned once daily).

I’ve spent more time than I’ve cared to at several public animal control facilities in support of caring for animals under investigation as well as pulling them for rescue. I’ve often had a unique outsider’s view of some backroom activities because as a rabbit rescuer, I’m not seen as so much of a threat to the revelation of care and handling of the typically higher-valued dogs and cats, and since staff routinely don’t know much about rabbit care nor have the time and/or interest to participate in it, I’ve often been given relatively free reign of facilities to go find the supplies needed and to help in whatever way seems appropriate. As a result I’ve been a few feet from injection euthansias, I’ve seen the gas ovens, I’ve handled animals grossly neglected by their owners, and I’ve seen the filth. I’ve also seen caring, overworked staff, well-meaning administration, and the power of cooperation between public shelters and willing volunteers. When the politics come in, though, inevitably animals’ chances disappear or they are routed to worse “rescue” situations.

It’s too bad the politics are so entrenched in this case that I doubt there’s much hope for an overhaul. On the other hand, public controversy usually leads to short-term improved care (uh-oh, people are watching!) and brief interest from the community. I just hope some of it sticks.

More phone camera downloads.

Last week I rode around town a bit after work, ending up at the new Keep Indianapolis Beautiful green building. The three wind turbines (as seen in the shadows) were spinning wildly, making for an odd park bench experience. A guy on a bike asked me for a smoke, and I resisted the DQ across the street.

Harrison lounges at the vet. He’s no longer limping nor sneezing, and he was neutered last week! After a testicle location complication, all is now well and as soon as the hormones are gone I can try bonding him with Vegas. Or Arliss. Or how did I end up with so many white rabbits? Joey looks tiny now by comparison.

Pippen approves of fresh greens in reusable shopping bags.

David on a Tyvek mission. This was part of the porch prep–blowing all the paint dust created by the wire grinder with an air compressor. No official decision yet made on painting the pimple. My votes outnumber his, but he seems to think his voters are stronger. I didn’t think this was an electoral college, but I may be able to filibuster with strategic planting.

I found my piggy Josie had passed away this morning. This was rather a surprise, given that her cagemate, Cappy, is very frail and less than two weeks ago I thought I was losing her, but she’s hanging in there. Both are quite old but Josie (aged six or seven) had been maintaining her weight and acting just fine, while Cappy has lost a LOT of weight, rattles when she breathes, falls over and cannot always right herself, and has progressive paralysis on her left side and difficulty eating. But Cappy’s still hanging out this morning!

Josie just looked like she’d gone to sleep in the corner, and I didn’t hear any response from the other animals during the night so I don’t imagine it was a particularly loud/distressing event. Josie had surgery last October for ovarian cysts and duct growths, unidentified white spots all over the uterus, and cervical cancer, and my unfortunately extensive experience with piggy cancer has taught me that we usually get a year of quality life after such surgery (it seems to spread), but it’s worth it because they bounce back quickly and are happy and healthy in the interim. My best guess is that she may have had a cancer recurrence and the “maintained” weight may have been tumors. But who knows. I’m so happy that she had been acting fine and was not outwardly ill–it’s all about QOL.

Josie lived with roomies Greta and Cappy for many years, just Cappy more recently as Greta left us awhile back, and had come from a guinea pig rescue in Illinois. Here she is after her surgery last year and with her pals.

Now to figure out how to keep Cappy company. I will move her into a bit smaller cage and maybe I can put her next to the bunnies. I haven’t been down to a single pig in years.

We often speak for the dogs, who seem to have similar mock voices. Walt likes to be right with you and often climbs into David’s lap, even in an office chair. He says, “I’m comin’ up!”

Note the squeaky ball on the desk. Walt brought it over to play but Casper, aka The Fun Police, growls and barks when he squeaks it, so we have to put toys out of reach as they arrive. She says, “There will be no fun around here! I’m going to attack you for having that ball even though I don’t want it!” He never stops grinning (we call that look Cartoon Dog) even when she gives him the snarliest looks.

The ball is not particularly out of reach if you consider that when we are out of the room, Walt gets up on counters to grab what seems interesting and then chews up the items on the bed or under the dining room table. Last week he even took a souvenir magnet I got in Rome off the fridge and ate that. While we were out of town this weekend, he apparently got a new package of Patagonia socks off my tall dresser, tore a hole in the bag, and somehow got one of the socks to Casper who ate it and has been pooping it out for three days.

Here’s a petition you’ll actually want to sign!

The Obamas plan to get a dog after the election. The AKC is promoting a purebred dog, showing pictures of the breeds they recommend, as well as pictures of the breeds McCain has–but NOT of a mutt, which he also has! Poor Coco.

Good old Best Friends has a petition to encourage the Obamas to adopt their next dog, not buy it. It’s a quick, easy, electronic signature! Come on Obama family, adopt your dog!

I know many of you are doggie lovers and rescue supporters. I’m signature 33,747…

Proof!
Week zero:

Week one:

Note my Teva-farmer-tanned feet and my pink capri jammies with turtles. That’s our very unfinished basement bathroom.

Of course tonight David discovered I have cellulite when I sit a certain way. I can’t believe this is its first appearance in the last four years. Ah well.

This man is in denial about his baldness:

Walt snoozes on my pillow on the couch. He’s not supposed to be up there.

I took the dogs out on the front porch last week. They really enjoyed watching the world go by. Now you can see why we need to paint the porch–we are not responsible for (nor can we remove) that seafoam green.

Sorry for the dim lighting… Harry the big bun met the pups a few days ago. He jumped away when Walt licked his nose.

This is Henry, up for adoption with a regional collie rescue. I like to imagine this is what Casper looked like when she was a puppy.

I swear that is the song my neighbors (not the super nice ones to the west who I think left me perennials on my front porch this morning) are currently karaoke-singing in their backyard! They did apologize to me over the mic as I was getting in and out of the shed to do yardwork; they swore they’d be better singers when they were drunker. David thinks they bought their daughter the new red Mustang. She doesn’t seem old enough to drive. They’re nice enough and we swap who cuts the side yard between us, so I’m not too worried. Their charcoal grill smells good.

I feel like I am cutting down the backyard, and every pile of brush I create unearths old dog poo piles. The dogs are thrilled that their favorite areas will now be accessible again. I suppose that’s better than Casper pooping on the walk like she did this morning.

New foster Harrison came from Fort Wayne ACC several weeks ago along with three other Flemish Giants apparently surrendered by the breeder. We shuffled some foster care slots and now Harry has come to stay with me.

We’ve been treating Harry for a snotty nose and a bad limp in one of his front legs (note how he holds it up), which some veterinary sleuthing pinned down to Pasteurella and hairline fractures, but things haven’t gotten a whole lot better. I’m going to try with another vet and hopefully get him to the point of neuter soon enough that he might be friends with one of my own rabbits.

Harry is quite mellow; I’ve never seen a calmer, cleaner unaltered male bunny, especially when other rabbits are around!

Here’s a bunny statue from the Vatican Museum. I’m just now getting everything downloaded from camera cards. Would you believe I bought a 2 GB SD card at one of the Vatican gift shops for €18? I expected to pay twice that.

(a little IRC speak from ages ago)

See y’all in a week or so–I’m on vacation! It takes more time to get READY for vacation than to take one, so let’s hope it’s a good, relaxing one!

I leave you with this, watching TV with my first piggy, Frisky:

David is usually still in bed when I leave for work in the morning (that’s what I get for working for The Man while he is self-employed), so I leave him reminder notes occasionally. A couple of weeks ago I didn’t have time to give the dogs breakfast, so I left this:

Note the torn corner. That’s because Walt took the note off the kitchen counter and ate it! We found it on the floor.

I took two foster buns and my piggy Cappy to the vet today. One of the buns is Whitney, who was found hopping about homeless in someone’s yard on Memorial Day. She’s a very pretty, plush rabbit.

While I was there, this beautiful fawn was brought in in a printer box.

She had been found down in a well near 56th and Arlington with a fox perched at the top watching her. She made cries like a lamb when the vet touched her; she was cold and in pain. If warming her and giving her fluids and pain meds can get her strong enough to stand, there are several local deer rehabbers, but young deer imprint strongly on people and tend to become nuisances when subsequently released to the wild because they are too comfortable around humans. Animal Control showed up, also having been called by the cop who brought her in, and I suppose it was lucky for the fawn that she was too ill to go with them to be immediately euthanized. Even if that’s her likely fate at the vet’s office, fewer transports to scary places are a little better. I would also expect that the vet and techs are gentler than an ACO.

David and I tried a new restaurant last week, Oishi Sushi. Would you believe it’s at 10th and Shadeland? Not an area exactly known for its exotic flavors. They don’t have their liquor license yet, but the food was very good. Someone ordered WAY more food than I did…

It was formerly a Chinese buffet that was formerly a Ponderosa (noted by the pines on the awning) but they’ve redecorated appropriately.

New computer! Which I’m not using to type this.
Assembly:

David got it up and running (with a little patient-diagram-reading from me) the same day the parts arrived, and has been kind enough to test it out on the plasma TV with his games using a wireless keyboard from the couch! I haven’t actually touched it yet.

Specs for the geeks, like Grandpa who always wants the best system:

ZALMAN 9500A 92mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler

GIGABYTE GA-X48-DS4 LGA 775 Intel X48 ATX Intel Motherboard

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9300 Yorkfield 2.5GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor

mushkin 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD3200AAKS 320GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-S203B - OEM

EVGA 512-P3-N861-AR GeForce 9600 GT 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card

PC Power & Cooling S610EPS 610W Continuous @ 40°C EPS12V Power Supply

LIAN LI PC-7B plus II Black Aluminum ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

I’ll hook it up with my current monitor, speakers, keyboard, etc. I can’t believe this old computer has lasted me six years! Upgrades aren’t really worth it anymore. I shall report back once I get to actually use my new system.

The driver’s view when Walt rides with us:

After drooling on our arms he eventually takes a nap.

Siblings, seated: my aunt, uncle (in the funny hat) and mom at the annual family Memorial Day picnic. Uncle Gary is celebrating the 20th anniversary of his heart transplant! Those folks at IU sure knew what they were doing.

We ate a lot of junk and some folks played ladderball, cornhole, and softball. I was lazy this year and napped in a lawn chair. Four dogs and a bunny were also party-goers.
My brother can be seen in the distance going for a ball. This is much better than exactly a year ago when he was in the hospital with his busted leg.

Note my new Tevas, because Walt ate my old ones last week.

We wore them out!