In a year that has already begun with ultimate suckage, Friday was the pits. The dog that digs under the fence somehow got out of the house with no one the wiser until she was out of the yard leading a half dozen other idiots with her. They decided to bark at the dogs in the yard behind us. The owner called Animal Control and we had the worlds worst day for an animal owner.
Over half my dogs are gone. Yes. I was over limit. Yes, I know, there are ordinances about how many animals you can have in the ETZ ... Extra-Territorial Zone ... of Las Cruces. But the officer did not have to be a condescending, bullying, verbally abusive person to my husband. Yes, the dogs were out of our yard. Did they bark at another dog and make a noise nuisance of themselves? Yes. Did they act aggressively toward anyone? No. Did they bite anyone? No. They were all headed back in the yard when Animal Control showed up.
Did Dagger growl at the Animal Control officers? Yes. But she growls at anyone she doesn't know. Did she present any other aggressive behavior? No. Did she even move toward the strangers? No, she wanted back in her yard with her person. Did Animal Control decide to be aggressive? Yes. Did they abuse my husband verbally, threatening him with jail and taking all of our animals if he so much as looked the officer in they eye instead of keeping his head down, his shoulders bowed and essentially doing the shambling "Yes, Massa," that the officer wanted to hear? Yes. Did they badger him to choose dog after dog to give them to euthanize? Yes.
After the ordeal my husband said he had killed them, chosen who would die and who would live, that he was no better than those who gave up Jews during WWII to go to the death camps only to save them selves. The officers thought he was weak because he cried as he gave up our animals to those who mouthed platitudes about him doing what was right, how he was cutting himself slack by bringing them out so he could place them in the trucks that smelled of death and fear, betraying friends to the heartless officers of "The Law". The officers kept on threatening to take all of the animals, including those that belonged to our daughter and those of our landlord who was not and is not in any violation of the number of animals that are allowed to a resident of this area.
Collectively, we live on three fenced in acres. None of the dogs was ill, abused or in danger, they had merely committed a nuisance by getting out of the yard. Now, we have lost so many of our friends I can't stop crying. And we still live under the threat of having the rest of them taken if we have not made substantial progress according to the officer's very subjective POV toward making out yard and lives "animal friendly" by meeting all of the specifications for the license we will pay for Monday on Tuesday. We have four days to build new dog houses, renew shots and get animals neutered ... And if the officer doesn't accept our proof that we are moving swiftly toward these decreed items, he may still take the rest of the dogs from us, leaving us destitute and in more emotional and psychological pain than I've been in for years.
I understand the reason behind some of the ordinances we have, but my dogs had done no damage. I do not breed fighting dogs the way some of my neighbors do, I take in strays because our local shelter cannot hold them all, no matter how much they say they are becoming a no kill shelter. Our local shelter is under investigation of an arroyo (natural drainage canal) full of dog and cat carcases. Our local shelter is under investigation for selling puppies to research facilities. Is it any wonder we take them in and hold them to the best of our ability until we can find homes for them? Five years ago, an animal control officer beat a dog, broke his jaw and pulverized it's front legs because "the animal tried to bite him", then put the dog in a cage and didn't bother to tell anyone it was hurt. The dog's legs were so badly damaged, they couldn't find a vein to put a needle into to put the dog out of it's pain and euthanize it. The officer was not even reprimanded for his cruelty.
I am praying that we survive this ordeal. I have lost many friends and do not wish to lose more of them. The next time you think someone may have too many animals, look deeper and see whether they are doing the best they can to help their four footed, fur coated friends or whether there is an issue.
Oh, yes. I guess the person who called animal control was happy about the result as she stood at the corner of our property and watched as my husband had his heart ripped out by these people.
And I am certain that there are many law abiding people of "The Law is The Law" attitude who will read this and merely presume that we have been taught a lesson not to break the law, to not presume to know better than our legal system what is right and what is wrong and to abide by the tyranny of small minded people who cannot see how much a person can love a number of animals. May the law always do well by you, or may you always have the cash to buy your way out.
Dedicated to the missing: Alice, Green Eyes, Brother Stupid, Ninja, Lookitchu, , Jowls, DingoBat, Chum Chum, Tuffit, and Kitsune
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