PRESIDENT A PIONEER IN ANIMAL WELFARE INDUSTRY
Helen Woodward’s leader devoted his life to saving animals
In 1977, Mike Arms was director of Manhattan’s Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Arms was bothered by the organization’s “kill” policy leading to thousands of animals being euthanized annually in New York City. He decided to leave for a life insurance job and gave two weeks’ notice.
Arms had six days remaining on his notice when he was called to the scene of a car accident involving a dog.
“There was this little black and tan terrier that looked just like Benji,” Arms said. “He was laying in the street with a snapped back and shaking badly. Just as I was about to reach down for him, these fellows yelled, ‘What are you doing?’”
“I said, ‘This little one is dying. I’m taking him in the ambulance.’ They said, ‘No, you’re not taking it anywhere. We’re betting on how long it’s going to live.’
“I reached down and scooped the little one up. I held him and cradled him in my arms. I looked down at him and he was staring into my eyes.
“His body started to relax as if he was saying, ‘I feel safe now.’”
“Just as I reached for the ambulance door handle, the fellows hit me from behind with a bottle and stabbed me.”
“Now, I was the one lying in the street.”
“That little one, who should not have been able to even move, found a way to crawl to my side and lick me back to consciousness. When I opened my eyes, I was staring into his beautiful eyes one more time.
“I laid in that street and cried. I prayed, asking God to give me another chance and promised to devote my life to protecting these animals. After that, my little friend closed his eyes and passed on.”
Arms survived. True to his promise, he rejected the insurance job and, instead, agreed to help run a “no kill” animal adoptions agency in Long Island. He worked there for 20 years, learning, making contacts and helping to expand the agency.