Sad Story of Little Boy & His Dog

[vanillasky]

Cynder, your posts that I've read this afternoon have moved me to tears.

Bless you. :blowkiss:

 

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I am a hard core animal lover with several. I am also a mother. Hands down, I love my child more. I know if I could only save one, it would be my son.

Would you have to flip a coin?

The boy and his dog story is a sad one, but it PALES in comparison to the deaths, violence and separation of human families.

It would have been lovely if everyone were able to be evacuated along with their pets, but PEOPLE must come first.

And I resent being lumped in with people that would leave a dog tied to the porch and skip away, Just because I would chose to have my son survive!

Right on! This is one of those unfortunate times when you have to make a choice. I know which side I am on. If I had to leave my cats behind - well, first I'd do all I could to not do so. Or spend whatever it took to go somewhere where I could sneak them in. But if that wasn't possible, if it was a simple choice between my cats or a person surviving - there's no question what I'd have to do - as much as it makes me cry to even think about being in that position.

 

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But why should these people who have already lost everything had to have chosen between their children or their pets at all?? No one should be forced to make such a decision. Their lives are already turned upside down and pure hell all within a week's time. Why add more emotional strain?


This just saddens me and ticks me off.... those people should not have been put in that position. It was not their fault that they lost everything.

Because they must. And a hurricane is no one's fault - life isn't fair, bad things don't only happen to bad people! The city was destroyed, the waters were rising, the shelters were overfull, supplies were running out or non-existent. They couldn't even save all of the people - having to save the pets too condemns more people to death - period. That is the cold hard reality.

 

[Linda7NJ]

Because they must. And a hurricane is no one's fault - life isn't fair, bad things don't only happen to bad people! The city was destroyed, the waters were rising, the shelters were overfull, supplies were running out or non-existent. They couldn't even save all of the people - having to save the pets too condemns more people to death - period. That is the cold hard reality.

Are we sharing the same brain on this one? :laugh: I thought I heard voices in my head, are you in there?

 

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I couldn't leave mine to starve or drown either, I would have to end their lives quickly and as painless as possible.

Me too - I'd hope I could bring myself to do it. If there was the slightest chance, I'd probably be stupid, set them up in a room with as much food and water as I could, and hope I hadn't condemned them to starve or drown - but if there was no chance - ugh, I'd rather not think about it. I have had to have a cat put to sleep - she died in my arms, but it's such a rotten choice to make, and for that one at least I was able to take some time to be sure it was the right choice for her.

 

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Are we sharing the same brain on this one? :laugh: I thought I heard voices in my head, are you in there?

What's this weird deja vu feeling there with your posts.....:laugh:

Nah, I think it's just as House said, being cursed with an unfortunate ability to do the math. The answers aren't always pleasant, the magic movie solution that saves everyone doesn't always exist.

 

[Linda7NJ]

Me too - I'd hope I could bring myself to do it. If there was the slightest chance, I'd probably be stupid, set them up in a room with as much food and water as I could, and hope I hadn't condemned them to starve or drown - but if there was no chance - ugh, I'd rather not think about it. I have had to have a cat put to sleep - she died in my arms, but it's such a rotten choice to make, and for that one at least I was able to take some time to be sure it was the right choice for her.

It's a horrible choice to have to make. I also have had to make the heart breaking decison to put a few to sleep over the years. Like you, I held them until the end, sobbing and thanking them for the we shared and telling them how much I loved them.

Hopefully, I will NEVER have to make such a choice because I was unable to get them safely out. A few years ago, I witnessed a man hitting a pregnant doe with his pick-up truck. Her neck was broken and she was gasping her last breaths, a police officer kindly ended her misery. I never thought I would be capable of doing what I did next, I removed her baby, toweled him off, got him breathing and delivered him to someone that knew what to do after that. He's HUGE and wonderful today! ( he thinks he's a dog

 

[Ntegrity]

I removed her baby, toweled him off, got him breathing and delivered him to someone that knew what to do after that. He's HUGE and wonderful today! ( he thinks he's a dog

:clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:

 

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That's wonderful! We've taken a few rescued infant kittens over the years - me and my sisters when I was younger. It started with a cat of ours who had a C-section and wouldn't nurse the kittens (most of our cats were always fixed immediately, but just this once we decided to let her have one litter - quite an expensive choice it was), so we hand raised them for the first 2 weeks of their lives, then found a nursing mother cat who still wanted to nurse kittens after all of hers had grown up and been given away. Then there was a friend of ours who found some infant (a week, at most 2 weeks old - eyes not open) kittens in a homeless guy's shopping cart, so she took them away, and gave them to us, and we did all of their feedings and such and raised them into two wonderful cats (mom said we could only do it if we were willing to give them away when they were old enough - but when the time came she couldn't do it either). Then there was another 2 batches that my friend S raised with my sister A's help - the vet knew she knew someone who had sucessfully kept alive infant kittens (most of them die, even with proper care and feeding - it's just so much work to keep up with all of their feeding, temperature, and bathroom care). S kept one of those - quite a cat Tabblert is too.

 

[PrayersForMaura]

What's this weird deja vu feeling there with your posts.....:laugh:

Nah, I think it's just as House said, being cursed with an unfortunate ability to do the math. The answers aren't always pleasant, the magic movie solution that saves everyone doesn't always exist.

I was blessed with creative ability and ability to do math well ... usually both sides of the brain don't work well together.

But I personally will not and shall not play God.
I have no children. I don't want children. But I like kids. And I would save a kid. There's no saying that a pet and a child could not have been saved had the right supplies been made available.
I take care of my pets. I don't ask people to take care of my pets but I donate money for other people's pets, babies, poor people, whatever ...
I wouldn't want anyone telling me that I must let my pet go.
No way. I wouldn't do it. That's my baby I've had for years, cared for, took to the vet, cried over when I thought was dying. My pets are more vaulable than my scrap books and anything I own.

It is not upon my shoulders, thank goodness, to judge which lives should and shouldn't be saved.

Sometimes pets are all people have.
To act like they are just some item or personal belonging that unfortunately got "swept away" or that should be left there to find its own food and shelter and oh too bad so sad is really disheartening to read.
But I don't expect everybody to share my opinion.

 

[Linda7NJ]

That's wonderful! We've taken a few rescued infant kittens over the years - me and my sisters when I was younger. It started with a cat of ours who had a C-section and wouldn't nurse the kittens (most of our cats were always fixed immediately, but just this once we decided to let her have one litter - quite an expensive choice it was), so we hand raised them for the first 2 weeks of their lives, then found a nursing mother cat who still wanted to nurse kittens after all of hers had grown up and been given away. Then there was a friend of ours who found some infant (a week, at most 2 weeks old - eyes not open) kittens in a homeless guy's shopping cart, so she took them away, and gave them to us, and we did all of their feedings and such and raised them into two wonderful cats (mom said we could only do it if we were willing to give them away when they were old enough - but when the time came she couldn't do it either). Then there was another 2 batches that my friend S raised with my sister A's help - the vet knew she knew someone who had sucessfully kept alive infant kittens (most of them die, even with proper care and feeding - it's just so much work to keep up with all of their feeding, temperature, and bathroom care). S kept one of those - quite a cat Tabblert is too.

Been there and done that with newborn kittens! I NEVER knew you had to "help" them go to the bathroom! It was much more difficult than I thought it would be, the every 4 hours feedings, the trips to the vet etc...Only 3 of the 5 lived. I learned a lot, like did you know one litter of kittens have have several different fathers?

 

[PrayersForMaura]

Because they must. And a hurricane is no one's fault - life isn't fair, bad things don't only happen to bad people! The city was destroyed, the waters were rising, the shelters were overfull, supplies were running out or non-existent. They couldn't even save all of the people - having to save the pets too condemns more people to death - period. That is the cold hard reality.

Supplies are not running out. They are now infantly abundant. People are donating from all over the country.
If they would've just thought a little harder, people could've brought their pets on board. I know my dogs would sat quietly at my feet and not taken up much space at all and neither would have I....
oh, and if all those buses that sat on the school yard flooded up to their roof tops were utilized like they were supposed to have been, pets would've fit on there, too.

 

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Been there and done that with newborn kittens! I NEVER knew you had to "help" them go to the bathroom! It was much more difficult than I thought it would be, the every 4 hours feedings, the trips to the vet etc...Only 3 of the 5 lived. I learned a lot, like did you know one litter of kittens have have several different fathers?

Yeah, their mothers lick their bottoms, and that stimulates them to go to the bathroom when they are still infants - up until the time when they learn how to do it themselves and will use a littlerbox (thank goodness that bit is instinct). So you have to duplicate that with a damp washcloth. We did several litters of kittens, and only lost one (he got stuck behind the thermometer we had put in to make sure they were warm enough and suffocated. His name was Panda (poor little guy - black and white and no tail). But that was our first litter - in later litters we made sure there was no such possibility for the kittens - raised at least 15, and only the one death - I hear that a 50% mortality ratio is the usual, so you did do good.

It really is sickening that some people see this as either or - either you love animals equally with children, and you'd accept that some people will die so you can keep your animal - wouldn't want to judge which life is worth more, or you think of them as mere personal property that you would just tie to a porch to let it starve or drown.

There are people in between those two extremes. :furious:

 

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Supplies are not running out. They are now infantly abundant. People are donating from all over the country.
If they would've just thought a little harder, people could've brought their pets on board. I know my dogs would sat quietly at my feet and not taken up much space at all and neither would have I....
oh, and if all those buses that sat on the school yard flooded up to their roof tops were utilized like they were supposed to have been, pets would've fit on there, too.

Now, yes. Then no. And whatever shouldhave been done, the people starving on the onramps, dying in the superdome can't eat, can't find extra room off of shouldhaves. You can't ride a shouldhave bus. (and we'll see, but with all the people who survived the hurricane and the intial flood only to die from lack of rescue, I think all those shouldhave buses would be full to the brim with them). It was what was there at the time that the overworked rescuers had to work with. So, so many people died for lack of a shouldhave. I'd still be wanting to save them before saving all the animals (however, I'd take the animals before all the thugs, rapists, murderers, etc.).

If only, if only - there's always an if only, 20/20 hindsight. But you work with what you have now.