Farewell Baxter, or, the SPCA Killed My Dog posted by Rogier van Bakel
You
see, the SPCA
deemed my
family unfit
to adopt Baxter (and for all intents and
purposes any dog) because we have two
children under the age of 12. I kid you not.
No matter that my wife and I have a history of caring for rescue dogs, including difficult ones, stretching back a quarter century.
No matter that our kids are used to having dogs, and know how to behave safely and appropriately in their presence.
Never mind that we've never had a major incident with any of our canines, and that they've never harmed anyone (or have come to any serious harm themselves).
Never mind that we have a verifiable record with our veterinarians, stretching back many years, showing that our dogs punctually and without fail received the necessary shots and any other medical care they needed.
And never mind that we would have signed a waiver absolving the SPCA of culpability if an incident did happen.
No. The SPCA of Hancock County, Maine, told us they have to do what is in the best interest of the animals. Baxter's "history" was unclear and so they couldn't vouch for him. Apparently, "the best interest of the animal" meant not allowing us to give him a loving home. And it means that, not long after the SPCA rejected our candidacy and actually threw us out of the shelter (you can read the whole sordid story here), they killed him.
Can you believe that? They decided that ending his life was better for him than letting him come home with us.
To use a Vietnam-era reference: In order to save the dog, they had to destroy him.
I wonder how many Baxters — abandoned dogs with prospective new owners who would've loved to take them home — have ended up on the pile of animal carcasses that the SPCA habitually produces.
"Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals." What a sad, horrible joke that name has become.
"Thanks also to the Nobody's Business readers whose supportive comments helped pull me through a rough stretch last year, after the SPCA of Hancock County, in Trenton, Maine, refused to let us adopt Baxter, the lovable Saint Bernhard they had advertised as "friendly" and "affectionate." If you'll recall, the fact that we have kids made us ineligible to adopt Baxter, or any dogs sheltered at the SPCA at the time. A few months later, SPCA staff killed Baxter because there'd been "no takers" for him. (I found out after the fact that the shelter actually bills itself as a no-kill. All I can say is, I hope they remember to wipe the animal blood off the fundraising letters.)"
