CITLALLY MACIEL
<Staff Writer>
The morning news caught my attention a few days ago. A report was on about the rescue of 50 dogs that were found in a house living in deplorable conditions in Palm Springs, California. The dogs were then taken to a local animal shelter. Their future was uncertain, until an animal group in Halifax, Nova Scotia stepped in and decided to have the canines transported to Halifax to find them homes. Their story will surely have a happy ending thanks to the generosity of our fellow people from the Maritimes. Unfortunately, many other dogs will not have such good luck.
It is undeniable that there are certain dogs that live very comfortably under the care of loving owners who cherish them greatly. But even in those situations, domestication of dogs has resulted in bizarre situations. It has been said that the pet business in North America has exploded to amazing magnitudes. From dog spas, to dog apparel, to… uh… dog psychotherapy, and drugs! Indeed, the CBC’s Doc Zone ran a documentary titled “Dog Pharm” uncovering the increasing trend to medicate dogs with behavioral problems, such as aggression and anxiety. Currently, this means that dog owners can medicate their dogs (and cats) to fix something that, perhaps, is not a problem, but just their nature. Certainly, dogs can be trained to behave splendidly. They are capable of learning anything from the basic, such as where to poop and when to stay, to far more elaborate tricks. However, it seems like desperate owners who are unsuccessful at training their dogs, are taking the easy way out by correcting their dogs’ behavior with drugs. A ludicrous and unfair practice, if you ask me.
There is no concrete evidence of when the domestication of dogs began. However, dog burials found in Germany point to the fact that the history of the partnership between humans and dogs dates back at least 135 000 years. Indeed, I say partnership, because once domestication occurred, dogs have been of great assistance to mankind. In an article published by the Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior, authors Udell and Wynne remind us of the many roles that dogs play in our society. Not only are dogs our loyal companions, but they can also fulfill other roles: police dogs, rescue dogs, and guide dogs for the blind, to name a few. Some dogs are now trained to aid people with physical and mental conditions by detecting cancer, assisting diabetic patients, and helping people to cope with anxiety. Udell and Wynne’s article focuses on scientific experiments that have been conducted on dogs to determine their intelligence and the malleability of their behavior. According to the authors, these experiments can be traced back to Darwin and many have shown that dogs have the ability to discriminate different stimuli, learn to read human social cues, and even learn the names of objects. Moreover, it has been conceived that the process of domestication removed aggressiveness traits, turning dogs into creatures fearless to humans. The authors compare the behavior of dogs to that of small children; that is, behavior that is characterized by complete dependency on humans for survival. They also prompt for more studies on the behavior of dogs, not only to shed some light on the evolution of “complex behavior” but also to “live more safely and profitably” with dogs.
Indeed, the benefits of training one’s dog are manifold. Certainly, for obvious sanitation reasons, dogs must be trained to pee and poop outside; for safety reasons, they must be trained to guard but also to refrain from attacking other people, and so on. However, I cannot help but wonder whether the domestication of dogs and the resulting dependency on humans has caused them suffering. This is specially so for the innumerable amount of stray dogs that roam urban areas throughout the world. In a documentary titled Companions to None, filmmaker Bill Buchanan explores the heartbreaking story of stray dogs in Mexico. It is the story of countless disease-ridden and starving dogs and the inhumane way in which the local authorities attempt to solve the problem. Unfortunately, the problem is not limited to Mexico. Turkey is facing a similar problem and, in 2010, there were rumors that the authorities in Istanbul were planning to collect all stray dogs in the city and dump them in the forest. The CBC’s radio program The Current interviewed a Turkish animal rights activist regarding this alleged plan. According to the activist, this is not the first time Turkish authorities have attempted to deal with this problem. It seems that, in the early 1900s, many stray dogs were collected and taken to an island where they were left to starve to death. Subsequent campaigns to get rid of stray dogs involved poisoning and gassing campaigns. Alas, the tragedy has also stricken domestic dogs. With the economic crisis, many American people have been forced to abandon their pets. Shelters are filled with animals whose owners are no longer able to care for them. Most of these dogs have to be euthanized because it is impossible to find permanent homes for them.
Fortunately, there are still some compassionate souls in this indifferent world. A non-profit society in British Columbia has taken on the initiative to establish a rescue center in Guanajuato, Mexico. This center is in charge of vaccinating, spraying, neutering and tending for stray dogs, as well as finding them new homes. In the US, informal organizations have been formed to deal with abandoned pets. Specifically, there is an organization of real estate agents that has come together to care for pets that are left behind inside foreclosed homes without food after their owners move out. If one of these agents finds a pet inside a foreclosed home, they mobilize the community to find the dog a new owner. And, of course, we have the case of the California dogs that have all been spoken for by households in Halifax.
I certainly do not call for the obliteration of pet ownership. I have pets of my own and I love them dearly. However, it is undeniable that animal abuse is an increasing problem. And abuse not only means sending dogs to an island to starve to death, it also means forcing dogs to be like humans and resorting to drugs to address behaviors that, in all likelihood, are not problems, but just part of their nature.