Spotted pigs and Dober-collies

Check out Features Editor Severo Avila’s column.

Every day on my way to work I pass a yard where a fat little spotted pig struts around the front yard like he owns the place and is patrolling the perimeter. I guess he’s a guard pig.

There’s no fence and it looks like he goes wherever he pleases. At first I thought he had just gotten out of whatever pen he was supposed to be in but I see him out there every day.

And he’s got friends too. Most days there’s at least one or two dogs that run around with him. I see them in the yard and on the side of the road and I’m afraid one day one of them will wander into the road or try to run across and get hit.

But the yard in question has a more pressing concern for me. There’s a dog tied up on the porch but her chain reaches down into the yard as well. It’s a pretty long chain and she seems to be able to reach food and water bowls put out for her but her chain isn’t fastened around her neck. It’s some sort of harness and is only tied around her waist. It looks tight and painful.

All these animals seemingly live at the same place and it annoys me that the property owners have seen fit to own not one but SEVERAL animals that they will not or cannot take care of by providing adequate fencing.

Before y’all jump down my throat and say “mind your own business,” it IS my business when these animals are running around near the road and vehicles are slamming on their brakes in front of me because they think the pig or one of the dogs will run out in front of them.

This is just sort of an introduction to my larger soap box issue which is that we in Rome and Floyd County need to be better about two things — animal overpopulation and responsible pet ownership.

The number of strays in this county (many of whom end up at our animal shelter) would greatly diminish if people would get their animals fixed. I know there is a cost to that but it’s worth it in the long run IF you care about being a responsible owner and IF you care about this community.

Now there are some who will say they won’t get their animals fixed because they want to breed them. Sure, breeding pets may make you a few bucks.

It may make you lots of bucks, but I hope you’re doing it in a responsible way and not just making your dog have litter after litter of puppies just so you can sell them on Facebook CLAIMING you want them to go to “a good home” but really you’ll just sell them to anyone who walks up with $50.

Y’all know who I’m talking about — those people who run puppy mills out of their backyard, breeding litter after litter of whatever the trendy dog of the moment is with all their crazy made-up hybrids. One day they’re posting teeny tiny teacup Lab-huahuas, then it’s yorki-doodles and Dober-collies. Just because your dog got knocked up by the neighbor’s dogs doesn’t mean you’ve created a new breed. A golden-puggle is not a real thing.

Oh, and while we’re at it, if you don’t know how to spell DACHSHUND you shouldn’t be breeding them. Don’t try to get around it by calling them “wiener dogs.” I should say here that I am by no means the judge, jury and executioner when it comes to animal welfare. I obviously can’t make anyone do anything they don’t want to. It’s your property and your animals.

But I will keep asking the members of this community to be responsible when it comes to their animals. Provide safe and comfortable shelter for your animals if you don’t want them in your house. You don’t need to go rebuilding Ceasars Palace for your Great Pyrenees. He just needs somewhere he can stay out of the rain or wind or snow when he needs to. And how would you like to be chained to a tree all day and night?

If you can afford it, get your pets fixed. And if you can’t afford it then ask for help. There are local organizations who offer assistance in the form of vouchers or coupons.

And think twice about giving pets as gifts. A puppy or kitten is very cute and giving one to a child on Christmas morning makes a great YouTube video but that animal will have needs and requirements (some very costly) for the rest of its life. Make sure you or the person you’re giving it to is willing and capable of caring for it.

Visit our local PAWS shelter one day. It’s at 99 North Avenue. There are lots of awesome and adorable animals there who need a home. They’re not all dirty, feral strays. In fact, a great majority are surrenders. They’ve been given up by people would will not or cannot care for them. Maybe one of those animals is right for your family. Sure there are cute puppies and kittens there but consider an older animal as well — one that might already be house broken or crate trained and may already be fixed.

There’s that old quote by Gandhi, the one that says you can judge the greatness of a nation by the way its animals are treated. Well I think you can judge a community by those same standards as well.

Want to make America great again? We can start with caring for our elderly and our homeless, our veterans, our children AND our animals.