As reported in The Undercurrent two weeks ago, the elderly spaniel found near the entrance to Crippen Park has not been claimed, despite extensive efforts by bylaw officer Bonny Brokenshire and CAWES to locate the owner. These efforts include a notice in the Sunshine Coast newspaper, after someone spotted a photo of this same dog at Langdale Ferry Terminal posted on a travel blog.
The dog, now named Joey, is deaf and has eye issues. After performing a physical exam, veterinarian Alistair Westcott reports that the dog is in good health other than mild, chronic conjunctivitis (common in spaniels) and some dental issues. His unkempt coat has been groomed.
Bylaw and CAWES have together consulted about Joey’s long-term care. Happily, members of the community have generously offered financial support and a fosterer and adopter immediately stepped up. It appears that Joey’s twilight years will be comfortable and full of love.
It remains a mystery why Joey was abandoned. At first, there were fears that an elderly owner had suffered a fall or other mishap. Every effort was made to investigate, to no avail.
In the end, it seems we must accept that Joey was abandoned. That leads to the question —why? There are a number of animal lovers on Bowen Island who take in elderly abandoned animals. We have heard many different stories about the animals. We are told, often secondhand, things like these: the owner died or has moved into an assisted-living facility and the relatives are not interested in taking the pet; the owners are downsizing into a condo which doesn’t permit animals; the owners have a new baby in the family and are concerned about negative interactions with the pet animal; or the owner is taking a new job which requires them to travel, so they feel it would be unfair on the animal to be left alone. There is often no way to verify these stories.
But sometimes a little more information emerges to shed light on why the animal is being given up. What might be true is that the animal is getting older and has costly medical conditions that the household is unwilling or unable to pay for. What might be true is that the owner cannot meet the animal’s health needs, for example regular injections for diabetes or the regular grooming required to prevent matts and tangles. What might be true is that the empty-nesters want to travel and the pet is an inconvenient tie. What might be true is that the owners find the animal’s behaviour unacceptable, for example, urinating indoors or excessive barking or destructiveness when left alone. What might be true is that the people just got bored, crated the animal 24/7 and finally dumped it. What might be true is that the people cannot face dealing with the mortality of the pet animal.
Many of these are not good reasons for giving up a pet animal who has been in a family for 10 or more years, giving unquestioning loyalty and love. There are charitable organizations who can help with vet bills. Behavioural issues can be dealt with by the right attention, for example, the frequent urge to urinate in older female dogs can be tackled with medication, while separation anxiety issues require help from a trainer or animal behaviour expert.
It’s great that Joey’s story will have a happy ending, thanks to many generous community members, but there are many other animals who are abandoned late in life and who are euthanised in shelters alone and without a loving embrace to send them on their way.
Maybe better education about animals’ needs will help. Understanding what companion animals require of us could prevent these issues arising in the first place.
Let us all try to deal with companion animals responsibly and not take them on lightly. They are not toys but living creatures who are entirely dependent on us until their dying day.
