We are failing our animals

The recent article in the Times about the two abandoned dogs in Eastpoint, who attacked and killed a beloved pet, was a horrific situation. Imagine yourself witnessing this. The failure of the animal control employee to respond to what was obviously an emergency, as well as law enforcement who reportedly stood by during the attack, highlights some of the severe problems facing Franklin County when it comes to attitudes towards domesticated animals.

The severe abuse of two dogs on Bluff Road in Apalachicola, which were picked up as the result of an anonymous tip to an Atlanta based private investigative firm, was documented in the Times several weeks ago. I don’t believe anyone who saw the photographs of these poor animals can justify this type of treatment of any living creature.

The same issue of the Times also documented several abandoned animals in Carrabelle who were staked without food, water, and shelter, which is required by law. These, including possibly wolf breeds, were being bred for profit.

There are laws to prevent these occurrences. There are fines set in place to penalize such neglect by pet owners. However, to date, there have been no arrests, no charges, and no fines. This failure is, in itself, criminal.

As someone who worked closely with the county Humane Society for years, I can assure you these are not new or emerging problems. Until such time as our Franklin County government, including the commissioners, animal control, law enforcement and prosecution raise the bar, the same old “look the other way” attitudes will prevail, and despicable treatment of animals deemed as possessions without accountability for owners will escalate. This type of negligent pet ownership will continue to grow and thrive in Franklin County. Abandoned and stray animals are rampant in parts of this county, and have already proven to be a genuine traffic danger. At what point, perhaps after these neglected and abused animals cause disease, injury or death to a human being, will people of this area wake up to the real public health problem that this type of status quo encourages?

We are failing the animals, and we are failing to protect the citizens of our area. The whole country is light years ahead of us in addressing these real problems in constructive ways, and we should be ashamed to stick our heads in the sand.

Please let your government know you want this problem prioritized and addressed. We need them, from the top down, to better train and educate their employees, and we need concrete steps taken to make Franklin County a better place, for us and the animals.

Jan W. Gorman

Apalachicola