#both that dog which she rehomed because she viewed him as the problem in their training and titling

[healingheartdogs]

If a dog is not able to understand something you are teaching them (whether it's because you're moving too fast, your communication needs works, you aren't breaking what you're teaching down enough, whatever) and you correct them for making a mistake during that learning process they are also not going to understand why they are being corrected. You will only be adding stress to an already stressful situation.

[orcinus-ocean]

Words

What words we use is important. Not only because the image it puts across, but because repeated use of a word actually changes the way our brains work and how we think of the thing described.

This is no less relevant in the field of animals, animal ownership, and the present controversies.

I will list the ones I can think of now, words that either need to be cleansed of their bad connotation, and those that should be reconsidered.

Pet

The word “pet” has gotten a bad taste in the mouth of the public lately. When you speak of someone’s animal, whether it be a dog, horse or tiger, as a “pet”, they feel insulted and tell you “NO, my animal is so much more to me than a pet!”

But really, what’s wrong with this word?

Let’s look at some definitions:

Google: a domestic or tamed animal kept for companionship or pleasure. Merriam-Webster: a pampered and usually spoiled child a person who is treated with unusual kindness or consideration: darling a domesticated animal kept for pleasure rather than utility Cambridge Dictionary: an animal that is kept in the home as a companion and treated kindly to be the person that someone in authority likes best and treats better than anyone else Dictionary.com: any domesticated or tamed animal that is kept as a companion and cared for affectionately. a person especially cherished or indulged; favorite Wikipedia: A pet, or companion animal, is an animal kept primarily for a person's company, entertainment or as an act of compassion such as taking in and protecting a stray cat, rather than as a working animal, livestock or laboratory animal.

In all these, we can clearly see a pattern. An animal that is beloved, treated well, and not used for any special purpose. And extended to humans, a favorite, treated especially well.

There is literally not a single negative connotation to this word. So where did the negative attitude come from? I’m not quite sure, yet I was among these people not long ago. I preferred to talk about “my animals”, or “companion animals” in general. “Pet” somehow felt as if one is talking about an animal as only a possession.

I don’t have a good answer as to where this has actually come from, but I suspect it’s just another part of the forthstriding animal rights movement. The move to view non-human animals as “people” in strange outfits, and this will show further in most of the other words.

I think “pet” needs to be cleansed and brought back to what it really means - a beloved, tame animal treated with care and affection, that is not used as livestock or a work animal.

Zoo

I suspect that a large majority of the public are still okay with going to a place called “the zoo”. But a growing number of people are not, yet they would have no problem paying money to visit a “sanctuary” or “wildlife park”. I have pondered for a few years whether zoos should go along with this cultural shift and rename themselves, for example “wildlife parks” - or if we should double down and cleanse the word “zoo”.

What is the origin of this word? Obviously, it’s from “zoology” and “zoological”, which has roots in the greek word “zoo”, put into anything relating to animals.

The 19th century had “Zoological gardens” and “Zoological parks”, and this was later shortened to a simple “Zoo”.

The only reason this word has a bad taste in the mouth of some today is because of the image of zoos. Since some people still think this...

...is how zoos work today (the photo is from the 1930s). If we give in and agree “yes, zoos need a rebranding”, I think that will only slightly delay what we don’t want to happen, which is AR orgs going for the jugular and making it impossible for zoos to exist.

TL;DR: “Zoo” is simply short for “zoological garden”, as in a place where animals are kept for public display.

Adopted/Bought

Ouch... I can’t be the only one who is getting pretty sick of this one. Definitions, again.

Google: legally take (another's child) and bring it up as one's own. Cambridge Dictionary: to legally take another person's child into your own family and take care of him or her as your own child to take an animal that has been left in a place such as a rescue centre, and keep it as your pet Merriam-Webster: to take by choice into a relationship Dictionary.com: to choose or take as one's own; make one's own by selection or assent to take and rear (the child of other parents) as one's own child, specifically by a formal legal act. Wikipedia: Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents.

I find it interesting that Cambridge Dictionary actually included animals as an optional definition, and that some did not mention children specifically, and thus opening it up for interpretation.

I will grant that “adopt” is also used for completely non-human things, such as “adopting a strategy”, but I think we can all agree that “adopt a pet” came directly from “adopt a child”, and is meant in the same context.

This is where I think this word is completely wrong and should not be used about animals, especially if money was involved. To buy or purchase something, simply means to exchange goods or services for money, and I don’t think I need to prove that with a dictionary.

Where we have a fork in the road is whether we consider animals “goods” or “people”. I certainly don’t think animals are objects, they are living things with feelings and needs and I wish we could have a third legal category between “object” and “person”.

But there doesn’t seem to be one now, and the AR goal is not to create one, but to move animals firmly into the “people” category, which includes things such as the right not to be owned.

If you take an animal from a shelter or other previous owner with no money involved, I can understand if you choose to use this word. But if there is any money involved at all, such as the ridiculously named “adoption fee”, hell no, you bought that animal. There is no shame in it.

Rescued

Oh gods... this one is much worse than the former. Sure, in some rare cases, animals are truly “rescued” and saved from a terrible fate. But this word has been so overused by people who want to feel good about themselves that it has nearly lost all meaning.

You found a starving cat on the street and took it in? Okay, you rescued it. A puppy mill was raided, the animals were put in the local shelter and nursed back to health? Yes, the shelter and officers involved rescued the animals.

You paid money for a random, rehomed animal at the shelter? You did not rescue it. You bought an animal from a bad pet shop? You did not rescue it. You bought an animal from someone who could no longer care for it, maybe even a really terrible owner? You did not rescue it. You bought it!

Again, there is no shame in buying an animal. And the word you use will not change the nature of the transaction, and the fact that the animal had no choice of where it went. It will just encourage the progress of the animal rights mindset in society.

Credit to BCR Watch

Sanctuary

This ones ties in both to “rescued” and “zoos”, above.

A real sanctuary, is supposed to be a place of comfort, where animals that have nowhere else to go (which is why there shouldn’t be very rare animals like white servals at a “sanctuary”) are not bred, not used for work or commercial purposes, and not put on display for the public.

If the facility does any of these things, it’s not a sanctuary.

In reality, a lot of “sanctuaries” holding exotic animals are in fact nothing but rebranded zoos, so that the owners and visitors can feel more “cozy” about the otherwise guilt-inducing “captivity of wild animals”.

The animals have no clue and can’t care about what the sign over the entrance says, or what ideology the owners of the facility believe in. They want to be cared for well, and in this regard, many exotic sanctuaries are only very poorly run roadside zoos with animal rights propaganda sprinkled on top.

Captivity

I have written about this before, and made a post based on a speech by Mark Simmons.

I really want to repeat a single quote from that speech here as well.

I was in the car, riding with a colleague of mine from Japan, and we were talking about this.

She was asking me, “Why is this a problem?” and we finally discovered, and I don’t know Japanese, but I said “Does the word you call for where your animals are in your zoos, is it the same word you use for people you put in prison?” And she went “Oh NO! Oh, that’s horrible!” And I went “Yeah but in English, it is!”

It really is a terrible word, not created by any AR agenda, but an unfortunate remnant from when we did not have the same sensibilities about capturing and keeping (or killing) wild and exotic animals.

As I showed in that other post, all the definitions and synonyms to “captivity” are negative. It is a word connected directly to imprisonment, deprivation, and punishment.

It sure is not how most animals I’ve met live their lives. Their “captivity” is one of comfort, pleasure, and a longer and healthier life than they would have if they were not “captive”, as in, prevented from leaving humans.

Even though some animals will leave when given the chance, the vast majority will have no idea what is going on but will be confused, scared, and completely unfit for a life in the wild, domesticated either by genes or by upbringing.

“Captivity” is the most important word on this list, that I think we should all completely ban from our vocabulary, in regards to animals.

[bee-menagerie]

Welp, I accidentally gave Zeppelin an eyeful of Sunny this evening (Zep was outside as per usual, and Sunny was inside--they were separated by a glass door and a mesh door).  Though it wasn’t intended, it was a safe way for them to meet each other, and I’m glad for it, because to say Zep did not appreciate the tiny usurper would be an understatement (she ran her nose into the door during a right-proper lunge attempt before I had to chance to rush over and de-escalate the situation).  This was most definitely a resource guarding response. The landing/balcony in front of the house entrance is indisputably “her” space. It has her crate, her bed, and her food and water dish. It’s where she retreats to--a “safe” zone. No other dog has ever been up there with her before. So the response to small Sunny galloping over wasn’t all too surprising. 

sooOO that’s the situation. A bit more definitive than I would have liked. Zep has met (and played with) new comers to her soi before (and in the driveway all the way up to the stairs leading to the landing/front entrance). Including an adolescent pup who hadn’t quite learned his manners yet. She growled at him, too--but only when he would approach her while she was eating. If she wasn’t eating, she let him take from her dish no problem.  I’m wondering if the move would reset her relationship with Sunny, but I’m not %100 certain how to progress from here, or if I should even go that far. There are no “professional” dog trainers in Thailand, so there’s no help to recruit.  Zep’s not being a bad or unreasonable dog for this, she’s just doing what she thinks she must. So I didn’t do or say anything to punish her for the incident (except sit in front of the door to block her view).  I wished there was a way that I could communicate with Zep that this kind of behavior would compromising her chances of moving with us, but alas.  The reading I’ve done all suggests re-homing [the puppy], but since Zep’s not really...fully...”tame” in the “is comfortable living within the confines of a domestic environment” sense of the word...There are a lot more question marks surrounding how well she’d settle into a new location than there is with Sunny (she’s also not...legally?? my dog. But that wasn’t really a deterrent before and it’s not suddenly a deterrent now). Zep would get along just fine, as the new(ish) neighbor two houses down has taken a real liking to her and has been [[shake fist]] feeding her full meals. We’re her night time retreat, but during the day, she hangs out on his property because there’s a lot more shade and a cool draft that comes off the small klong (creek) that passes through that yard. 

But boy howdy, I don’t want to be made to pick between the two of them. The logical answer is Sunny, but I’ve put a lot of work into Zep and she has come so far and gained a lot of confidence since the first time she waltzed into my driveway... She use to be so timid and reactive, to the point that she wouldn’t even take treats from me (or anyone), and would wait until long after everyone had left before she’d consider eating it. Now, she’ll take food rewards no problem, eats out of her bowl, is confident and calm with other dogs we pass on the street (well...until there are more than two at a time...) I’m really proud of her progress.  

Since I’m posting this to the #dogblr tag for help, I’ll give a bit more background (a bit of a broken record for my followers, thanks for bearing with me): I live in thailand where feral/stray dog populations are...well...rampant. Stray dogs free roaming the street are about as surprising to see as the pigeons are.  A wealthy family in my neighborhood--one street down--brought Zep (a right proper pariah dog) over and told the shopkeepers on that street to “look after her”--and have since let her free roam the streets with the rest of the strays. Based on what I’ve been told by various shop keepers, she was rescued from the meat trade. I met Zep when we were walking home from one of those shops one evening, and she followed me all the way up the stairs to the space in front of the door... and she’s never really left since. Sooo, as the weeks progressed, I started providing things for her like a bed, and food (orijin, but she’s been turning her nose up at it ever since the neighbors started feeding her their leftover dinners skdjfh)... Eventually, I got her crate trained (to discourage territorial barking at 3 in the morning--which was a thing...) She’s never been in a home. I tried to encourage her to sit in my home but it’s a very stressful thing for her, and she’ll only do it if there are lots of firecrackers going off (ie: chinese new year). It overwhelms her quickly. She has her rabies vaccine, but besides that, I don’t know her vaccination/medical history. And she won’t get into the car for a vet trip (she is also not yet leash trained) so I’ve been considering having a vet come to the house instead--just to look at her and tell me what ever they can tell me about her.  We’re moving very soon, to a house with a fenced yard, and I had planned to take her with me with the intention of slowly adjusting her to a more domestic lifestyle once we were in the new home. I received Sunny as a birthday gift, and she came home on the 3rd. She hasn’t been around very long at all, but I’ve fallen deeply in love with her (if the current  state of my blog doesn’t give it away). She fits our lifestyle like a glove and has filled a great big hole in my heart left behind by a previous hound I had once lived with. There is a %0 chance of me rehoming her. Suggesting I do so is fine and expected, but shaming or guilt tripping on that firm matter will be left unaddressed, with no disrespect. That’s a lot of writing and feelings based entirely on a single encounter and some reading--but I digress. I want to keep both dogs. They mean the world to me. How do I go about this safely and with minimal stress for both pups? Any and all advice is appreciated! 

[thealmightyrage-blog1]

From bad to worse

The accident that happened to my daughter happened on a Monday and I firmly stand by my belief that DHS caused my daughter to be attacked by my Pitbull.  First of all, they ordered me to kennel the dog OUTSIDE at all times.  Arkansas is not exactly a tropical State so imagine Feb in Arkansas, it is not even a deep southern State, and it is a southeastern State.  The temperature on Feb 6, 2017 was between 48 and 68 degrees that day, not exactly freezing but would you want to camp out overnight with a blanket and a tarp covering your kennel?  The reality is, DHS is guilty of animal cruelty and I get it sure, they are the Department of HUMAN Services, not sure what service it is that they actually provide without forcing it upon people but that's another story.  They still have to abide by the laws of the United States and they are point blank guilty of animal cruelty.  This dog, my dog Mikey was a very hyperactive dog, if canine ADHD is a thing, he had it.  I fed that dog alone twice a day.  The day he attacked my daughter, I was forced to feed him a third time because the one of the police officers who responded to this incident did not believe that I fed that dog twice a day, he had a visible ribcage was apparently the only evidence they were planning on using against me but we will get to that in a moment.  So on Monday, my daughter was taken to a hospital and then airlifted to a hospital out of State (Missouri) because they feared she had a fractured skull.  Stone County Social Services took custody of my daughter without a warrant and with no probable cause, to the best of my knowledge; Arkansas DHS never even took custody of my daughter.  My wife's aunt was forced to go pick up my daughter in Springfield after we were escorted out of the hospital.  So, two days after my daughter is attacked, in an accident caused by Arkansas DHS, my wife and I decided that the best thing we could do is make the hardest decision we ever had to make.  We chose to rehome the three remaining dogs we had, minus the Pitbull was scheduled for execution by the State of Arkansas.  We initially tried to place the dogs temporarily with friends or family, in a futile and hopeless attempt that we may one day reclaim the dogs.  We managed to place the oldest dog with my mother in law, it is doubtful we will reclaim her due to her age.  The other two were finally able to be placed with a rescue.  I say this was the hardest decision I ever had to make and people are going to judge and criticize but the fact remains that I had these dogs before my daughter was born and I believed I could balance the two.  The reality was, I had too many dogs and my love of animals blinded my obvious and more important love for my daughter.  On Wed Feb 8, just 24 hours before my wife and I were to have the case against us by DHS closed and have these monsters out of our lives, we received a knock at the door late in the afternoon.  It was the local police department, they asked my wife and me to step outside and the second we did, they informed us there was a felony warrant for our arrests.  There were at least two police officers, two cruisers, perhaps more.  It was overkill.  My wife suffered a very nasty cut as a result of trying to pry my daughter away from the Pitbull and her arresting officer made it worse by twisting her thumb during the arrest.  We did not resist, I had no shoes on and managed to be able to slip some shoes on that a friend had left on my porch.  My wife and I were charged with 1 count of endangering the welfare of a minor, which in Arkansas is a Class D Felony and 1 count of animal cruelty, which on the indictment is listed as an unlisted misdemeanor.  Now, imagine this, we are being charged with animal cruelty, but there is a house full of dogs who haven't been out to use the bathroom yet, haven't been fed etc.  The police didn't seize the dogs and take them to a shelter; they were still there when we got out of jail 12 or so hours later.  Did they really believe the bullshit charge they gave me or did they think allowing my dogs to go a day without a meal, adequate amounts of water and stuff like justice?  Mind you, my Pitbull boxer was quarantined in the kennel outside as required by Arkansas law for 10 days.  So, 4 dogs, no food, no water, no outside time to relieve themselves but I'M guilty of animal cruelty??  Bullshit is what it was.  I felt guilty, but I was not guilty.  My wife had never been arrested, same with me.  I had never seen the inside of a jail cell, let alone been booked on anything.  The fact that our faces, names and charges would now be blasted all over the internet and especially living in a small town, I knew that our reputations, whatever was left of them were gone.  Two days after the accident that affected my daughter and our family and I was stuck in a cell to dwell on all that emotion.  I closed my eyes and could still hear her screams, I cried for my wife, my daughter, both innocent in all of this.  If I only got rid of the Pitbull sooner, none of this would have happened.  I should mention that the Pitbull was NEVER aggressive before DHS ordered us to kennel him outside our home, two weeks before this accident; he was licking my daughters face, showing affection for and earning our trust to have that dog around our daughter.  I have plenty of photos of this dog lying peacefully a few feet from my daughter, so who caused this accident to happen?  DHS.  They caused my daughter to be attacked and they killed my dog.  I sat in that cell and wondered what my wife was doing, how she was coping?  I wasn't worried about my daughter because I knew she was getting medical care and before I was kicked out of the hospital, I was at least aware of the fact that her injuries were superficial.  I knew my daughter was probably with my wife's aunt, so I knew she was in good hands but of course I thought about her, I just did not worry about her.  We were told we weren't even going to see a judge to set our bail until Friday, I wondered what would happen to our DHS case on Thursday, literally a million things went through my mind as I sat in that cell.  As appetizing as the jail food was, I declined and did not eat until I gained my freedom.  That freedom would come Thursday morning; they were preparing my fashionable jump suit which I had on for all of about 10 minutes when they allowed me to take a shower because they said I had court.  I don't know how, I don't know why, but I have a feeling either our lawyer in the DHS case or somebody pulled some strings because it was Thursday, not Friday and we were having a bail hearing in front of the same judge that oversaw our DHS case.  I have no problem with this by the way; the issue of this judge recusing himself never even came up.  From my point of view, here was a judge who knew the backstory to our DHS case, knew how hard we had fought, our successes, our mistakes, and now this case happens.  I could not have asked for a more fair and impartial judge.  We were released on our own, no bail, no bond, just a promise to appear.  This was a felony warrant mind you, so try to put that in perspective, we were let go without having to pay anything, just promise to show up.  They also, for convenience sake adjudicated our DHS case and started the process of getting our daughter back again.  And that as they say, is how this portion of the story ends.  There is so much more that I will be adding in the coming months and even the coming days.  Be sure to stay tuned for more.  If you find it in your heart to help fund a home security setup and a pro se lawsuit that is going to be taking place soon, I urge you to donate or share with perhaps someone who is in a position to do so.  Until next time.  Blessed be. https://www.facebook.com/One-after-another-1387559854882114/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel https://www.gofundme.com/andrewandchrissy