For those who thought I was flaming, first let me say, I'm sorry.  I know
I hate reading angry letters.  It can ruin a good part of my day.  But
yeah, I got mad...
 
See,I do not believe that animals should be put down unless it is
completely certain they are going to die.
 
My ferret Luna was VERY ill when I got her.  She had been left in a house
by a couple when they got divorced.  She and her cage-mate were left alone
until they were basically dead   A cleaning lady who had been hired to
check on the house felt sorry for them and took them to a pet store.  From
there, a lady who ran a semi-shelter saw them and bought them realizing
how bad off they were.  I was contacted by another shelter that knew I
was looking for a friend for my ferret.  When I saw Luna, I couldn't help
but feel sorry for her.  She was nothing but skin and bones.  She wanted
to play, and would hop around for a little bit, but she was completely
exhausted afterwards.
 
When I took her home, it was a battle to even get her to eat.  I even had
to force herto eat ferretvite.  She had bad diarrhea and a cyst next to
her anus that was -- let's just say gross.  Finally, she started to
eat.Then she started to get her strength back.  Then she started to play
like a real ferret!  Emma and Luna really loved each other.  If Luna was
sleeping alone, (she slept a lot more than Emma so this wasn't unusual)
she would make little whimpering sounds in her sleep that sounded terribly
sad.  I would go find Emma and put her in the hammock with Luna.  Luna
would stop crying, put her little arms around Emma's shoulders and her
head on Emma's neck and sleep peacefully.
 
After a year, Luna started loosing a little bit of hair.  Then I noticed
that when she would eat, she would either scratch at her face or rub it
on the ground for extended periods of time.  After a little while longer,
she started loosing the hair on her face.  I took her to the vet and he
did an exploratory.  He found a small benign tumor by her intestines and
a hard, small, lump at the edge of her stomach.  He also said there was a
discolored spot on her liver.  Because of the way she was acting and so
on, he thought it might have been food allergies, which was rare, but
possible.  We tried all different kinds of options, but she kept getting
sicker and sicker.  It was so sad to watch and I spent many days crying,
but no matter how sick she got, she continued to eat and still loved for
me to carry her around on my arm.  When Luna finally died, I had the vet
perform an autopsy.  I would never have done this, but for the fact that
no one could figure out what was wrong with her.  It turns out that every
vital organ had cancer.  When he did the exploratory, he couldn't look at
her heart and lungs or get to most of the areas that he could now look see
without risking her precious health.  Everyone was amazed that she had
lived as long as she had with so much cancer.  They were especially amazed
that she had continued to eat the whole time.  They said it must have been
extremely painful for her to eat and digest.  But you see, Luna wanted to
live!  She wanted to live more than when I got her.  In the end everyone
realized that, and was touched by it.  And I can find comfort in the fact
that I know she was happy, even if it was only for a year.  She loved
Emma, and I think she must have loved me (Otherwise, why would she let me
carry her in her sickest hour?  Even when she'd hiss at the other ferrets
to go away.)
 
I understand the effects of cancer on people, because my mother,
grandmother and grandfather have all had it.  Even on their sickest days,
they never gave up hope.  Why can't an animal feel the same?  I thought
often about getting her put to sleep, but I realized that it was just so
I wouldn't have to see her in pain.  Until Luna showed me she wanted to
die, I wasn't going to end her life.  She must have had some reason to
want to live.
 
I know that some animals get horribly sad.  Some even die from sadness,
especially ferrets I hear.  But even if there's a chance that they'll
live, shouldn't we take that chance, for their sake?  Just because they'd
be sad, and they're past midlife doesn't mean that they can't find
happiness again.  Someone might be willing to work with them to give them
that extra year of happiness.  Talk to someone who's lost a family member,
best friend, or a loved one.  It's something that will effect them for the
rest of their lives, but not all of them choose to end their lives because
of it.  Why shouldn't we extend this courtesy to Dogs or any other animal?
 
My dog was severely abused and neglected before I adopted her.  It took a
lot of work, but she can trust people now.  In fact, when the people on
the list described their dog, and the reasons for putting it down, it
sounded a lot like my dog.  When I left her in a kennel, for the first and
only time, she didn't go to the bathroom for 4 days.  She sat in front of
the door waiting the whole time.  She can tend to be really aggressive
towards other dogs, and sometimes people, but she really loves my ferrets
and thinks that my mice are her babies.  She freaks out VERY easily at the
oddest things.  Sometimes, if she gets scared she'll loose her bladder
control.  But if I leave her with another person who gives her attention,
she does quite well.  Before I started getting her used to other people,
she would freak out and run around the house whining looking for me, even
if other people were with her.  One time, she tried to dig through my
door.  It's true, and I've said it before.
 
Perhaps I don't understand the situation, but I can't have such faith in
humans!!  Especially when I hear that someone's going to put their dog
down because they're moving!!!!!  I know several people who have done it
for no good reason.  They just thought the dogs/cats would be better off
dead than going to another home.  As someone who has taken on these
animals from time to time, I've always found out that they adjust and end
up happy.  I know of many, many, many, people who dump their unwanted
animals in the woods because they think that the dog or cat will be fine.
No, they're not just rednecks who do this, most of these people are what
you would consider normally great people.  They just don't know any
better.  They really think it's best for their animal.  But when I used
to go canoeing with my dad, we'd stop and buy hot dogs and a huge bag of
dog food because we knew we would run into starving dogs in the woods
every time.
 
I still pick up every stray that I find.  I have tons of stories about
why you should give any animal a chance, but I'm already quite embarrassed
that this letter has gone on so long.  I want you all to understand that
this letter is only meant to explain my views, which don't have to be
yours, but I feel sad about the situation with the dog for many reasons.
I normally don't get mad.  I hope you can forgive my negative vibes, but
sometimes I feel that somebody has to say something, just in case
something's happening for the wrong reasons.
[Posted in FML issue 3728]