Operation Kindness DMN LTE

[Guest guest]

DMN published Sandi Laird/Operation Kindness LTE on Friday. Here is the unedited version, as Sandi submitted it and gave permission to cross post. MargaretVegetarian Network of Dallas/********************************************************Dear Editor,All we have to do to get our blood pressure up these days is to look at the prices we are paying at the pumps. For me living 30 miles from work, it cost $400.00 per month just to drive to work. This is bad enough, but we are also paying higher prices for just about anything we buy that is trucked in. If you have a business, you are going to also notice the fuel charges or extra shipping charges every time you receive a delivery. We are all paying the price in one way or

another; however, the ones who might be paying the ultimate price are the dogs and cats being turned in at our local shelters and humane societies. People are losing their homes, having to move in with other family members and the pets that were once a part of their families are now being surrendered. To make matters worse, we are just beginning kitten season and more puppies are born all of the time. People are not coming to the shelters to adopt these animals. When you don’t know how you are going to pay to fill up your tank, you are not likely to take on the expense of a new pet. In the last twenty years, I have enjoyed helping over 42,000 animals get adopted into loving homes. You cannot imagine the agony I feel watching a grown man cry as he passes his beloved pet over to us and leaves our shelter or listening to a sobbing woman tell me about how she watched a car pull up and then drive off

leaving behind the box of puppies she just brought us. You cannot imagine how I feel when I tell the lady who is bringing in her cat or fellow humane officer, begging us to take some of the animals whose time is up, that we cannot accept any more animals because we are just too full. But, worse than all of this, I agonize for the Animal Service Officer that I just said “no” to as she or he looks for the last time into the beautiful eyes of that puppy or kitten that they are about to give back to God. Desperate times take desperate measures. It might be wise for the Dallas City Council to adopt the proposed new animal ordinances that are about to go before them for approval. Sandra LairdDirector of Animal CareOperation Kindness Animal Shelter