All huddled in the corner of a box that served as their squalid little
home, these three scrawny, dirty and extremely frightened little dogs cowered
as their rescuers attempted to coax them out to safety and the hopes of a new
life.To the three little ragamuffins puppies these rather strange people
were probably only going to hurt them like everybody else did. After all one of
the favourite occupations of the neighbourhood kids was to throw rocks at them.
Did those children not know how much those stones sting when they hit a puppy
?…but, when the puppy cries out, the children laugh !
I know I just spent five days
with a whole load of them.
They were not shimmering in a
divine light, nor did they bask in a mysterious glow with wings adorning their
backs…
No Sir! Mostly they were clad in
scrubs, bending over operating tables, nursing animals back from anesthesia,
prepping cats and dog for surgery, clad in grubby jeans and t-shirts carrying
countless cages of dogs and cats down the grass hill to the makeshift clinic.
We
have 50 animals who are literally begging for a home. Some of them have had
such a tough time of life so far that when you approach them the take a step
backwards, convinced that you are surely going to yell at them, or hurt them or
make an angry gesture. Just imagine how dreadful it must be to fear all
humans…how the trust of the natural friend of man must have been abused for
these dogs to be afraid of us…we are supposed to be a team, that’s why God
created companion animals!
So
the stage is set, the decision is taken, you are going to get a (or another)
dog.
The
first image that comes to mind is that cute, sweet, wiggly, small and totally irresistible
puppy…Puppies that come in all shapes...
You
wanted me, you bought me, or adopted me (spent quite a lot of money
too), you brought me home, and played with me, cuddled with me and
laughed with me. In return I would wait for you to get back home every
day, at the door, my tail wagging, licking your hand, your face, your
feet, to show you how much I cared. I know no other way of expressing my
love for you! Sorry I can’t write poems!
The white nightie hangs on it’s hook in
the bathroom rather like the standard flying over Buckingham Palace
declaring that the royal landlord is in residence…..The pure
domesticity of this image sends a warm glow through my veins….That white
nightie hanging there means quite clearly one thing: Mommy’s home! When
I am away, nothing hangs on this hook, no nightgown, no dressing gown,
as they are no doubt hanging on the hook behind the door in an anonymous
hotel room somewhere around the world.
Sitting on the bath-tub step, his big head resting between his paws is Buddy, a contented sigh, his people are home…
You are old, you are handicapped, you are frail, you
are alone and you are never sure where the next meal is coming from.
Your only shelter is under a car in a parking lot,
when it rains the water comes under the car…when you were younger and a bit
stronger you could cope…but now you are old….and sick.!
How the heck can you cope with all those negatives
against you?
Yet little Pinky still manages to wag her tail and
lick the hand that feeds her...
"Little” Boss moved in on Boxing Day, an adorable, small
golden, Potcake who at the time could have easily “passed” as a Labrador puppy…Granted
he was a tad skinny, and his tail was kind of crazy long, and well his paws
were, huh…a little on the wide side!
Maybe a bell should have rung, but it didn’t!
Those cute little baby teeth, sharp as miniature razors,
busily chomped into every dog biscuit, bone, toy, a few pair of shoes
(foolishly left lying around by yours truly), and anything else he could lay
his ever-growing paws on !
Dog
food disappeared into his small tummy...
Love, care,
commitment, warmth, friendship, companionship, these are but a few of the
emotions and conditions you experience when you own a pet… Never again are you
alone, always a friend at your side waiting for you, unconditionally accepting
of you, as you are. When you put your key in the door at the end of the day
there is a furry face delighted to welcome you home, no worries if your make-up
is smudged, your hair a mess or your clothing less than designer label…They
want to greet YOU, the real YOU under all those trappings that we have grown to
think are essential…They want to be with their friend, mentor, protector, and master!!!
(Note:
“master” is now politically
incorrect when used in connection with pet-ownership, but, in essence that is a
term that is still widely used)...
Take big, take handsome, take
brave, …..Mix sweetand loving, and fun and kind… Colour him soft and gentle, and
caring and wise…
All of these attributes and more
went into the wonderful canine cocktail that was Patricia Vazquez’s beloved
Mastiff “Bruno”.
Bruno was a well known figure
amongst the animal world of New Providence, 215 pounds of rippling golden
muscle, topped off with a large blunt head and a dashing black muzzle…invariably
his comical tongue would be lolling out of the side of his enormous mouth as he
smiled in a quizzical manner at all those who looked at him in complete awe...
I would like to share something very personal with you. I
wrote this letter to God on behalf of my dear friend and pet Abigail Aranha,
who had been a part of our family for 14 years. My 17-year-old son could not
remember life without her.
She came to us via Brenda Franks from an abusive home, and
was always a little afraid of strangers but was just fine with us.
It has taken me since June 9th, to be able to
reread what I wrote the night of the 7th of June, and this long to
share it with you. She lay in her basket beneath my desk as I wrote and at
times I felt almost as if it was being dictated because the words flowed so
freely...
I am sure that many of you saw the dramatic
news article in
the Tribune this morning that if we do not find homes for the animals in
the
bulging Bahamas Humane Society perfectly healthy and sweet dogs, cats,
puppies
and kittens will have to be killed because there is no more room for us
to
house them. This was no exaggeration.This situation has been worsening
for
weeks as the economy fails to improve and more and more people are
forced to
surrender their friends because of lack of funds to feed them. This is
what
happened yesterday, we reached “boiling point”. I just could not let
this
happen on my watch, at least not without a major fight on our part.
I contacted most of our media and I have to
say, hats off to
the Tribune, who jumped right in and wrote a wonderful piece, front page
and
inside front with tons of pictures...
At present the Bahamas Humane
Society Shelter is over flowing….we have too many of everything… too
many
puppies, too many dogs, too many kittens, too many cats and lo and
behold too
many rabbits !!! Not enough homes!
Break down in numbers:
52 Kittens
25 Cats
22 Dogs
25 Puppies and
13 Rabbits…
If you could but see that amazing
array of cats and dogs we have, mixtures, crossbreeds, big, small, long
fur,
short fur….every colour and personality…
We are not a “no kill” shelter,
but deep down inside that would be THE dream, huh?
Oh, she/he is a great dog, BUT …(Pick any of the following…)
“We’re
moving.“
;
“I’ve changed life style.”
;
“I am going to be
traveling.”
; “We’ve just had a baby.”; “We just don’t have the
time.”
;
or perhaps, “ Our new flat is too
small”
Lately there has been a rash of
dogs whose owners are just discarding them like a used Kleenex. One
phone call
to the Humane Society, BAARK, Proud Paws, Ark, AFAR, Kim, Laura,
Melissa, Fina
whoever and they can wash their hands of the responsibility and we can
take
over and find a home for their ex pet…
Take 200 hundred people who love animals and love
the music
of the 1960’s and 1970’s, add some amazing out-fits, a smattering of
flowers, a
dash of wine, and a selection of wonderful silent auction prizes…..Mix
in a
large serving of sumptuous buffet and you will have a fantastic and
successful
evening.
That is exactly what happened when the
Bahamas Humane
Society hosted the first ever “Flower Power Party” at the Sheraton
Nassau Beach
Resort...
Nassau, Bahamas - A classy night at the Fort: That’s
what is in store for Nassauvians on Friday night, February 5th when the Bahamas Humane
Society holds it’s
B-Humane launch: “A Night with the
Arts”, generously sponsored by the Swiss bank: Lombard Odier. This event has
been painstakingly put together by the Fundraising and Events director of the
BHS Rebecca (Becky) Armbrister. She first started to dream about it when she
took the job at the BHS in May 2009.
It took months of planning, talking, cajoling, persuading, begging,
pleading, patience, and…Oh
yes,
hard work! On Friday that dream will become a reality at our very own Ft.
Charlotte lit up by flairs, with a carpet scattered with paw prints and a host
of guests all dressed in white and aqua…. with the splendid eighteenth century
Fort as a majestic backdrop. What a great evening this promises to be.
I have now had the
hardworking pleasure of being the President of the Bahamas Humane Society for
two years …it has been a roller coaster experience with days of tremendous
elations and days of dreadful despair and depression… I feel that trying to
move forward and get people to understand works with three steps forward and
two backwards…we are making progress with the general population but it is an
uphill struggle.
2009 was a good year for
us. A year of changes? Yes… But over all, a good year, with people coming
forward to help us, people who care, giving of their time and money….We need
both.
BAARK was created by
some very proactive and dedicated people and they work very closely with the
BHS…we are lucky to have their support and assistance...
A lesson to be learned about the
power of determination.
It was about two years ago when
the magnitude of the sea turtle situation really hit me. I had always had a
nagging concern for them, and had always been disgusted by the deplorable way
they were treated after capture and prior to slaughter, but two years ago I
realized that we had to do something to protect this fragile species tottering
on the brink of extinction.
The Bahamas Sea Turtle
conservation Group was born one evening at Debbie Krukowski’s home when a bunch
of us gathered together to discuss the recent rash of large turtles being
caught and paraded, lying miserably on their backs...
This week was a very encouraging week for animal lovers, especially for
me as we finally saw a definite interest in the rights of animals to
live pain-free and cruelty-free lives. This interest came in the form
of the press getting hold of a horrible story where a man, on Step
Street, Fox Hill, Nassau, confronted his girlfriend (and the mother of
his one year old child). When she managed to get away from him he
allegedly turned on her family pet and shot the animal, a large
crossbreed, in the stomach twice, and killed him.
This senseless
killing appeared to spark more interest than usual, and the local press
was “all over it”. I received countless phone calls and was invited
onto several news programmes. I even did a LIVE interview during ZNS
news. Please don’t get me wrong, I have no personal interest in having
“air time” or being known, my ecstasy on being on TV (four times in one
week) is because of the exposure it gave the animal cruelty situation
in the Bahamas. I feel that perhaps it has been a bit of a wake up call
that we should all pay mind to...
The Bahamas Sea Turtle Conservation Group had a marathon 72 hours starting on Monday June 8th through until late on Wednesday June 10th.The kick off event was a lively interview with Kim Aranha and Jane Mather (two of the three co chairmen of The Bahamas Sea Turtle Conservation Group: Debbie Krukowski being the third co-chairman), on the “Daily Boil” with Chrissy Love…There was a lot of serious talk laced with laughter and light banter. However the bottom line was very serious…Turtle week had started and The Bahamas Sea Turtle Conservation Group had various events planned to enlighten the country as to why we MUST stop the slaughter of sea turtles in this island nation of ours.
On the evening of Monday June 8th, in spite of heavy ran almost all day, a few minutes before 7:00pm the clouds parted to show a blue sky with a strong presence of “brother sun”. The light was vibrant over Rawson Square as people gather to celebrate a candlelight vigil in honour of the sea turtles...
It has been really a long time since I wrote anything about Buddy and what he has been up to. He successfully turned two years old back in March, and is probably one of the sweetest boys in the world. A blunt nosed, inquisitive, happy, floppy Labrador, his good disposition causes him to get his chew stick stolen by the other dogs frequently. He has figured out that the best way to deal with this dilemma is to rush into whatever room I am in and franticly jump up on me (taddle tail!), I now know what this is supposed to mean, I quickly hand him a new chew stick and he runs into the other room with a jaunty step where his two friends are, showing off the newly acquired chew stick, and throwing it up in the air in triumph as if to say “naadi, naadi no ho….mine is better than what you stole…..
Dear Friends or the Animals in the Bahamas,
