5 Things You Can Do To Save Animals Around the World
By epetsure
Most of us look at our pets or at other animals and see not just a life, but also a valuable creature, a sentient being with a soul, feelings, and needs. Animal Rights Awareness Week originated in 1999, and was founded by an animal rights group that wanted to educate people of the basic needs of animals around the world, and to advocate for the humane and compassionate treatment of all animals, including pets, farm animals, wildlife, and animals used for testing, experiments, and medical research.
While most people treat their own pets with kindness, many are not aware of the conditions in puppy mills, and some pet shops, shelters, labs, zoos and circuses. Just because a farm animal is raised for our eventual consumption doesn’t mean that the animal should not be treated with respect and care. Over-harvesting, pollution and habitat loss due to human demand for land and resources, such as rainforests, minerals and oil, have led to the extinction and endangerment of many wild animals.
Animals enrich our lives in countless ways. Aside from the many health benefits and companionship they provide, animals are also a part of the geology and history of our world, adding to its beauty and diversity.
Yet, many of us continue to turn a blind eye to shelter pets that were turned away when they became inconvenient, or the farm animals that were abused and tortured before finally being slaughtered only to end up on your dinner plate. What about your cosmetics that are tested on animals that have never known a loving touch, or the animals we have for entertainment that are beaten and poked if they don’t perform. Not to mention the species of plants you may have in your garden that can be dangerous to indigenous wildlife.
Even worse are the situations where humans intentionally harm animals either out of ignorance or entertainment. Places that support things like greyhound racing, dog fighting, cock fighting, horse slaughter, and even farms that allow animals to live and suffer in horrid conditions before being slaughtered for meat, like the cows and chickens we find in the freezer section of most grocery stores. These places whether out of ignorance or plain disregard, need to be reminded that while they may tolerate watching animals endure these conditions, we as human beings will not.
It may seem like animal cruelty is an overwhelming hopeless, world epidemic. But, according to the ASPCA.org, PetMeds.org and Paws.org there are 5 things you can do today to help animals around the world:
- Buy organic or free-range meat, chicken or dairy products.
- Don’t buy or wear fur products.
- Prevent contributing to the pet overpopulation problem by ensuring your dog or cat is spayed or neutered.
- Adopt your pets from a shelter rather than buying from a pet shop
- Report all suspected animal cruelty and abuse to the authorities. It may not be safe for you to intervene on your own, but notifying the proper authorities can save and significantly improve the life of the animal(s) that are in danger.
Many have already conformed to a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle, but millions more need to acclimate to that mindset in order to make a real change in the animal and meat industry. And while you can’t represent or even change one million people’s minds, you can change what you do and how you treat the animals in your life. Who knows, you just might be the millionth person that tips the scale in the right direction.
