The Dog Pound

Does anyone know I'm in a dog pound? Does anyone know where to look for me? 

When a pet ends up in a dog pound, its fate is almost always certainly death.

I've been told the dog catcher gets paid RM50 for each dog, and an additional RM15 to kill the dog if no one comes to claim it after 2 weeks.

For the owner to secure the release of his pet, he has to pay a fine of RM500 for failing to get a dog licence.

And at the pound, the fiercer dogs will not allow the smaller or weaker ones to have their share of the meal, which sometimes lead to death by starvation. It's pretty much a "dog eat dog world" at the dog pound.

After the two-week grace period, the dogs will be killed by lethal injection supposedly by someone with medical knowledge on the dosage. But I've been told the dogs are allegedly fed chicken neck bones laced with rat poison.  The dog will have to endure internal bleeding for a day or two before succumbing to the poison.

In the remaining days of their lives, can't these dogs be treated with more compassion and kindness?

On an unrelated incident, I heard that someone recently climbed over the fence to get into a neighbour's compound.  This man is a Muslim.  No, he didn't climb over his neighbour's fence to create mischief. He did it to feed his neighbour's dog which had been left unfed for days while its owner is away, probably on a holiday.

There are numerous and various forms of cruelty.

Cruelty rears its ugly head in dog pounds; in badly run shelters, in pet shops --- when the dog is not sold and kept in the same cage it was put in when it was months younger and in homes with clueless, careless owners.

Choose not to be cruel.  Choose kindness and humanity.

Treat Strays With Kindness

 THOUSANDS of homeless dogs in Johor have been culled in a most inhumane way.  Hopefully, this will come to an end.

  A recent videotape of seven dogs being bludgeoned to death by dog catchers with what was seen to be iron stick, surfaced in the social networking site, Facebook.  The taping garnered an outcry from dog lovers nation-wide.

  Malaysian Independent Animal Rescue founder and president T. Puspa Rani flew to Johor Baru to lodge a report against the Johor Baru Municipal Council (MPJBT).  She was joined by three other non-governmental organisations concerned with animal welfare, and some 15 people who lodged invidual reports.

  This is believed to be unprecedented.
 
  There were previous cases of dog culling and abuse, but the number that responded to condemn the act was not like this.

  Also unprecedented was the fact that MPJBT readily admitted to the wrongdoing.  Kudos to the young man who took the trouble to tail the MPJBT lorry and record the gruesome incident. 

  All it took was one act, one individual.

  After it was seen and shared via Facebook, and the numbers made the difference.  Now, we just need to be persistent.  Keep at it.  To stop the cruelty, and any future acts of cruelty.

  Puspa also talked to representatives of the Department of Veterinary Services who was also at the Skudai police station and to her shock, found out that the MPJBT actually does not have a certified veterinarian to terminate the lives of the dogs.

  According to her, no dogcatchers are allowed to kill.  This is like murder of the innocence whose crime is only to be born a stray.

  There is something even more shocking.  Companion Animal Rescue Effort Society (CARES) founder Joseph Chia recently told me that he had received numerous complaints of pet dogs that have gone missing from homes. 

  Chia said that although the dog catchers have the right to enter a locked compound to snatch the dogs, it should not be done without any prior warning to the owner.

  "Even if there were complaints, the dog catchers should be merciful and let the owners have some time to do something about it as these are not strays," he said.

  However, not much can be done there because the pet owners were too scared to lodge a police report. 

   If we keep quiet, no one will know what is going on.  I know there are people who are insensitive to all these.  People who do not like dogs, for instance, would consider homeless dogs as just "biological trash".

  "They have no homes, and they can't be on the streets.  So what else can be done except to kill them?"  There are people who will never comprehend why there will be a public outcry when strays are slain. 

  But every life is precious, and ought to be treated with utmost respect.  And do not forget, the numbers can make a difference.  Persistence can make a difference.  Whatever it is, do not give up even when the situation seems hopeless.

The Miracle Drink

Updated. Thanks to Ah Tin for pointing it out to me that the 6th veggie is indeed  Kailan (Chinese kale) and not white spinach. I have checked with my aunt. The error is regretted.

Original Post

I took down the last post because I really wanted to write about "sloth" but decided that it was not for me to judge. You don't really know the other person's position or circumstances to pass any judgement because you're not caught in that situation.

So, I'll just share a fruit + vegetable juice recipe which was given to me earlier today. My aunt gave it to me because she knows I have some health issues. She said I need to steadfastly consume this "miracle drink" daily to see the results.

Just blend all these together and bottoms up every morning.

   

+ WHITE SPINACH (which I can't find a picture of and don't really know what it is).

Met some of my aunts today because my 79-year-old uncle had succumbed to lung failure. He passed away on Wesak Day but I just knew about it last night. Maybe I was fated to attend his funeral this Saturday before I return to JB. His wife is 89. I didn't get to talk to her because she was sleeping.

The passing of my uncle was not as unsettling as the sight of the clutter in the house. But it really is none of my business. Even if I wanted to help the family I also don't know how.

So ...

Concentrate on the juice recipe. Can someone tell me what is white spinach?

(Note: This post was not written to attack anyone. What I saw bothered me but there's not much I can do here).