Ref: http://www.myanimalcare.org/2011/08/street-kittennow-safe-and-sound.html
Aimy texted me yesterday morning to say that the street kitten had escaped from the cage, despite the cage door being reinforced with tubings.
How she got out remains a mystery, but cats are known to be extremely resourceful in doing and getting whatever they want.
Until now, the kitten has not been found.
I informed Prem yesterday, and she said the kitten is an extremely smart one and will always have her way. Perhaps she just wants to be a street kitten and doesn't want to be confined.
You know, sometimes, in the midst of having so, so much to do, I do sit back and reflect upon whatever we do and ask myself if this is indeed the BEST we can or should do for the animals.
Sometimes, I have no answer.
Whatever we do is based and decided upon our human rationalisation. We use our feelings, emotions and rational thinking to decide what is best for the animals.
But will we know if what we think is best is really the best for the animals?
We don't.
I suppose this is why moderation is the key to whatever we do.
Is spay-neuter entirely correct? Maybe not, because we don't have the animals' consent. Maybe not, because we are subjecting the animal to the risk of the anaesthesia and surgery. But our rationale is that we don't want them to keep breeding, which is also a health risk (repeated pregnancies) and a death risk, whether by natural conditions or man-made ones (captured-and-killed, poisoned, run down, etc.). So we still do it. We still push for spay-neuter.
Is rehoming entirely correct? It depends - does the animal WANT to be rehomed in the first place? We can never be sure. Some may end up having a good life after being rehomed because they are well taken-care of, and that's good. Some may not. Just yesterday, someone called me asking if I could check if a labrador she had rehomed is at one of the shelters in KL. Apparently, she had rehomed this dog, but the owner could not cope anymore and after some time, had sent the poor dog to the shelter. And this is a shelter that practises euthanasia when overcrowded. So is rehoming entirely correct? It depends. Does the animal want to be rehomed? Will the owner look after the animal well? We won't know.
Looks like in the case of this street kitten, she did not want to be rehomed or fostered. She wanted to be free. Where is she now? We don't know. She found her ways and means to escape from the cage despite all the reinforcements. We can only pray she is safe and will be able to find food and shelter. Luckily she has already been spayed and vaccinated. I can only take comfort in remembering what a shelter manager had told me - that cats will never lose their survival instinct. Throw a healthy adult cat anywhere, he said, and they will be able to survive. Can dogs do the same - unfortunately, no.
And there are more questions that beg answers, but the answers will never be found. Is euthanasia correct? We don't think so because we feel we don't have any right to end a life. But many others think it is right because they do not want suffering to be prolonged. Again, it isn't about right and wrong, but doing what one thinks is best for the animal.
I often discuss these issues with the people at the shelter to try to understand why shelters have to do what they do. There are so many animals living in crowded conditions at the shelters. Sometimes there would be an outbreak of disease because a diseased animal comes in. Tens of animals are infected and the infection is fast spreading. The shelters that do not have a quarantine area or isolation wards would have to resort to euthanasia in order to save the rest of the animals.
It is sad, and I would never ever be able to manage a shelter of this kind.
In our work, we can afford NOT to resort to euthanasia because the number of animals that come through us are small. We will go all out to treat and nurse the animal until the end. But shelters cannot afford to do this. So they have to do what they feel is best. I doubt anyone enjoys the task of having to kill an animal. The shelter people tell me it is SO emotionally heartbreaking for them, they cannot even sleep at night.
I suppose in the final analysis, in whatever we do, we have to do it with a clear conscience. As long as our intentions are guided by compassion and wisdom, it would be the best one.
Then, we live with these decisions...for the rest of our lives.
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