To the student who left a box of "UGLY KITTENS" in front of Big Chief Grocery Store in Santa Fe:

You need to know that your actions were unspeakable, despite whatever good deed you thought you were accomplishing. On Sunday night, I went to Big Chief to pick up items for dinner and saw an unattended box that read: Free Kittens - Ugly Kittens - Santa Fe kittens (all in colorful, bubbly letters). How cute it was for you draw a picture of the Santa Fe H.S. Mascot. This is not a school event, young lady. This is not a Homecoming sign or a Pep Rally banner. These were small, sick, kittens that you intentionally and negligently left in a box in front of a grocery store. Your actions are not only appalling, but illegal!

Common sense should have prevailed in this situation at the very sight of the last kitten - the kitten I took home, spent over $200 dollars at the vet, and risked transmitting roundworms, ear mites, and a severe case of sarcoptic mange to my other pets. This was the same kitten that was so anemic and emaciated with a body temperature 12 degrees below normal that DIED in my arms the next day. He reached out twice towards my face, made two pathetic attempts to cry, and then died ... right there in my arms. It was a horrible sight that I wish upon no one.

I don't care about the money and I would spend $200 again tomorrow to allow an ailing kitten to die in someone's arms, rather than a cardboard box! Maybe you'll think twice next time before dumping kittens like a bag of garbage. Maybe next time, you could consider their welfare before your own convenience. Maybe, you could call the police or animal control so they could get immediate medical care. How could you be so sure that some sucker like me was going to walk by and pick him up? Let this be a lesson in maturity and compassion.

In case you were wondering, he was black with beautiful green eyes and we named him Chief before he died. There is no such thing as a free kitten, little girl.

Erika Yates
Santa Fe

Chaining dogs banned in Texas City

We've all see it before. A sad dog, a lonely dog, or an angry dog - or all in one - chained up in a yard. Sure, maybe he has a food and water bowl, and if he's lucky, even a dog house. But what kind of life is it, when it's spent within a 8 or 10 foot circle all alone? Within 60 days, this will be illegal in Texas City, and it's about time.

As this article on KHOU explains, studies by the Humane Society have shown that dogs kept on chains develop aggressive personalities. Dogs are pack animals, after all, and isolating them from their pack (their human family) would be as cruel and psychologically disruptive as depriving a small child of human contact and affection.

Whiskerville would like to say that we are THRILLED that Texas City has chosen to take this positive step, and we sincerely hope that Galveston County, Texas, and the nation will soon follow.

It's the right thing to do, and it's our responsibility as a society to be the caretakers of our animal population.

UPDATE to the above article

RE: "UNTYING OUR FOUR-LEGGED FRIENDS"

DISAPPOINTED - Our exuberance was shot down this morning when we learned from the front page of the Galveston County Daily News that while Texas City is coming out of the stone ages and making it illegal to chain/tie your dog to a stationary object, "overhead cables" will remain legal.

What that means is that on May 6, 2007, all the irresponsible pet owners who do not deserve an animal in the first place, will simply untie their unaltered, flea infested, heartworm positive dogs from their tree and hook them up to an "overhead cable." Now these suffering animals will live out the rest of their miserable lives running back and forth in a straight line!

Do we think this is an improvement over these angels sitting in the mud, sun, and their own feces? Goes without saying. It is just not enough!

A tribute to Steve Irwin, a tireless activist for conservation, and lover of all animals, especially the not-so-snuggly ones. Thanks, Mate, for entertaining and educating millions of us about God's creatures, from the most vulnerable to the most intimidating. Your departure leaves the world less rich. We can only hope your inspiration will lead many to follow in your most accomplished footsteps.

An Interesting Day at the Rainbow Bridge

By drharper on Livejournal

The Rainbow Bridge is a place of both peace and anticipation as departed pets await their beloved owners. There are plenty of things to keep them contented while they wait: trees you can't get stuck in, endless meadows, splashing streams, thickets perfect to hide in for pounce-attack games.

But one day the residents noticed some rather...unusual newcomers arrive.

The koalas and the kangaroos slipped in rather quietly, but then came the bearded dragons, the skinks and the goannas. The influx of snakes startled an entire family of cats up a tree. Pythons, cobras, tiger snakes, brown snakes and even fierce snakes. There were so many at one point, it seemed the ground itself was alive with writhing. A burly wombat shouldered his way through the crowd and plopped down in a shady spot, barely missing a Jack Russell terrier who yapped indignantly as he abandoned his position.

And then the crocodiles showed up.

Finally, a Great Dane managed to get up enough nerve to approach one of the reptillian giants.

"Um....excuse me," he said hesitantly. "But why are you all here?"

The croc dropped her jaw and laughed. "Same as you, mate," she said. "Waitin' for someone who loved us."

The dogs, cats, gerbils and other "typical pets" looked at each other in confusion, then at the plethora of weird, ugly and downright deadly creatures assembled. Who on Earth could possibly love some of those faces?

"I see him!" shouted a green mamba from his vantage point in one of the trees. A cacophony of squeeks, hisses, bellows and roars erupted as the mob surged forward toward a lone human walking across the field toward the bridge. The other animals managed to catch a glimpse of him before he was overwhelmed by the crowd.

"CRIKEY!" he shouted joyously right before he was bowled over by the wombat.

"Well I'll be," said a Persian as she tidied up her fur. "It's that Aussie my human liked to watch on TV. Had to be the craziest human on the whole planet."

"Oh, please," remarked a echidna as he hurried by. "Is it really that that crazy to passionately love something God made?"

Pup tent? Puhlease
July 5, 2006
For the dog or cat that never roughs it, pet resorts provide everything from wrought-iron beds to TV and phone privileges

By EILEEN McCLELLAND
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle

Spot lounges in a custom-made bed draped with a down comforter. He watches Animal Cops: Houston on TV, chats with his owner on the phone, then barks for room service, anticipating some cuddle time, a hike on a nature trail and a game of tug of war. Surely it's time for new lambskin linens, ice cream or a bedtime story.

Far-fetched? Not exactly.

While their owners take off on summer vacations, some lucky dogs are ensconced in homey splendor. Forget the concrete floors and bars. These days, pricier premium suites are outfitted with wrought-iron beds, artist-designed murals and civilized sliding glass doors.

(snip)

"We don't use the K-word around here," said Trisha Murphy, owner of Bayside Bed and Biscuit in Kemah. "We're not really a kennel." Luxury suites at the pet resort are decorated with murals depicting ports around the world.

(snip)

The Pet Palace in Webster provides transportation in a stretch limousine from anywhere in the Houston area. Average cost? $50 per trip. "People pull out the video cameras when I show up to pick up dogs in a limousine," said owner Darrell Bivens, "and from a pampering-your-pets perspective, people don't mind paying the extra money." Bivens previously worked as a pet sitter and learned all about owner quirks. "We would get written instructions about leaving on the TV and pulling back the linens and catering to their every whim," Bivens recalled. "So now our rooms are completely finished and decorated with fans and TVs and regular-style beds. And we still have the indoor-outdoor option where they can go outside at their discretion."

Click Here to read the rest of the article!

A very sad article which perfectly illustrates why NO ONE'S cat should be an outside cat:

Judge finds cat's head outside of home
By Kelly Hawes
July 1, 2006

GALVESTON — Judge Susan Criss had a jarring experience Thursday evening as she returned home from work.

“I saw something in the street and when I went to investigate, I realized it was the severed head of a cat,” she said.

Criss, the judge of the 212th District Court, immediately notified the Galveston Police Department. Investigators took pictures of the head and then delivered it to a Houston veterinary clinic for testing.

“There was some question whether this was done by another animal or by a human being,” Criss said. “The veterinarian determined it was definitely done by a human.”

Lt. Joe Peña of the Galveston Police Department said investigators were treating the case as a matter of animal cruelty.

Click Here to read the rest of the article.

Acting like animals
June 21, 2006
Rescue organizations are getting creative in efforts to find homes for neglected, abandoned pets.

By LANA BERKOWITZ

Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle

Puglet, Jill and Otis arrived with their entourage while the film crew was setting up on the corner of Ashland and West 19th in the Heights.

The dogs were ready to make their acting debuts, but the director needed only one for the Road Runner online commercial...

In Daniels' arms, Otis looked content. The director looked content. Puglet and Jill, with their tongues hanging out, also seemed content, even though they had just been rejected for the role as dog prop.

The Whiskerville Animal Sanctuary dog wranglers were ecstatic because their animals were getting publicity for shelter pets — and earning some cash.

Puglet, Jill and Otis are formerly homeless dogs rescued by Whiskerville. Puglet, about 2 years old, was found wandering in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina and taken to Whiskerville in Texas City. Jill, a black Lab/terrier mix, was born Feb. 17 at the facility with six siblings to an abused mother. Otis, about a year old, was sick when he was picked up at an animal control facility in Houston.

Click Here to read the rest of the article!

Lost Dog - He can survive a fire and a hurricane, but not the Houston SPCA

By Richard Connelly
Article Published May 18, 2006

If you're a pet-loving Houstonian, you might have heard the tale of Harley the dog. A black Lab mix, he was found wandering around after Hurricane Rita, his back badly burned.

Houston's Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals took him in and sent him to a medical facility for his injuries. He returned to the shelter, where he became a symbol of the agency's efforts after hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Harley made a splash at such events as the annual Mutt Strut, where the HSPCA puts its best foot forward. He was ready to be adopted.

How's Harley doing now? He's...ummmm...dead. And not from the back burns, or post-hurricane traumatic stress. The HSPCA euthanized him -- by mistake.

Oops.

Read the rest of this sad story at the Houston Press Online.