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REPORTING ANIMAL CRUELTY or ABUSE
Always remember that animals do not have a voice to protest. It's our job to speak up when we suspect that animals are being mistreated or abused. If Pooch Heaven can be of any assistance, please contact us and we will do what we can. If you have knowledge of or suspect animal abuse is taking place in your area, please take the following steps:
While charges of animal abuse are sometimes, unfortunately, not taken too seriously in some jurisdictions, in others the law is more sympathetic and prosecutors are more ready and able to press animal abuse cases. If you suspect animal abuse, it is always worth the time and energy to make complaints and press for their investigation. Be polite but firm when you call, and be prepared to give details such as what you are seeing/saw, your name and address, the location of the animal, who you think the "owner" might be, etc. Success or failure depends largely on the willingness of your local authorities to pursue the matter as well as the level of abuse being perpetrated, and more importantly, your willingness to pursue the matter and make the complaint stick. (A very good book on this topic is Animals, Property, and the Law by Gary L. Francione and William Kunstler, esq. If you're like most people, you will learn a lot of rather startling things from this work.) In North Carolina, as in almost everywhere else in the US, you can contact the police by dialing 911. If you want to talk directly to animal control authorities, if for example you want to be sure that what you want to report is a legal case of abuse, look in the "Blue Pages" section at the front of your phone company's residential listings ("White Pages") to obtain the correct number. If you want to learn more about animal abuse laws in your county or state, or at the federal level, FindLaw is a good resource. The city you live in may have their own city code available on-line. Note that not all cities will have their city codes on-line. You will after some research discover that animal neglect/abuse laws are usually listed as Class 4 Misdemeanors or as mere violations. Hopefully in time, with citizen activism and a change in attitude toward such cases in the legal system, more serious punishments will be prescribed for these laws and actually be meted out. Again, how much you press for enforcement of these laws has a lot to do with whether they are enforced, so be prepared to be persistent. |
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Welfare Awareness Recommended Reading: You Can Save the Animals: 251 Ways to Stop Thoughtless Cruelty  |