I'm One for the Animals: October 2014

Sunday, October 12, 2014

Rest in Peace Excalibur & all victims of Human Kind.....For all those without a voice:

Before too much time goes by, I’d like to take the time to take this post and dedicate it to all the animals wronged by human kind, especially an innocent dog named Excalibur that until just a few days ago lived happily with his human mommy and daddy in Spain. Unfortunately, his human mother, Teresa Romero, a nurse in Madrid contracted Ebola while caring for a Spanish priest that returned home with Ebola from West Africa. He died. The nurse contracted Ebola despite wearing protective gear. Excalibur didn’t have Ebola. He wasn’t even tested, but the Madrid authorities felt it necessary to euthanize the dog despite this. Despite the fact, that there is no proven scientific evidence that Ebola is transmitted from dogs to humans and vice versa, Excalibur was put to sleep, to death. There was no isolation for this dog to be watched whether he developed Ebola. There was no studying the dog at all. Perhaps, just perhaps, we could have learned something about fighting Ebola from Excalibur if he did or didn’t develop Ebola, but the Spanish government didn’t see it this way. So, not only was the dog unnecessarily put to sleep, Excalibur died in vain. As with many animal deaths, his death served no purpose at all. The following is a photo of Excalibur looking down from his balcony.

Decision to Put Down Ebola Victim's Dog Sparks Protests in Spain

More likely, if the dog did have Ebola, it would have come from his human mommy from her exposure to the Spanish priest. His human daddy Javier Romero was asked for permission to put the dog down, but he refused. Animal activists started a petition on Change.org, which I was proud to sign. Despite 400,00 signatures, the Spanish authorities went against his will with an order to euthanize Excalibur. Imagine what poor Excalibur went through. First, his mommy disappeared, then his daddy. He was left plenty of food and water and then, some strangers show up at your home. They take you away to a place and you have no idea what is going on. You feel a sharp prick in your arm and then, you feel woozy and nothing else. This is what happened to Excalibur, if he was lucky.

Photo of Spanish Nurse Teresa Romero with Excalibur.

'Save Excalibur' fails: Madrid euthanizes Ebola patient's dog

(CNN) -- Madrid health authorities have put down Ebola patient Teresa Romero Ramos' dog, Excalibur, despite protests to save the animal's life.

The dog was sedated before being euthanized, according to health authorities. Its body was moved, following protocol, to a place where it could be cremated.

Excalibur's death comes despite a public push, including a Change.org petition signed by about 400,000 people.

"It would be much easier to isolate or quarantine the dog just as they have the victim's husband," the petition stated, rather than forcing Romero and her husband to lose "one of the family."

http://www.cnn.com/2014/10/08/health/save-excalibur-ebola-dog/index.html

Sadly, Excalibur wasn’t the first animal to be killed, and won’t be the last. Every minute of every day across the world, animals are killed as victims of poaching, neglect, abuse, willful intent, their time runs out and space in the kennel/shelter has no room. This is wrong and needs to stop.

As I close this post, I dedicate this post to Excalibur, a dog put to sleep for no real reason except out of fear and ignorance by humans. Rest in peace, Excalibur and all the other victims of human kind. The following was the final photo of Excalibur: This is an undated image released on Wednesday Oct. 8, 2014 by Spanish animal rights organization PACMA.

Decision to Put Down Ebola Victim's Dog Sparks Protests in Spain:
Read more: Decision to Put Down Ebola Victim's Dog Sparks Protests in Spain http://www.medindia.net/news/decision-to-put-down-ebola-victims-dog-sparks-protests-in-spain-142270-1.htm#ixzz3Fxi14vLt

Until next time, tell your pet you love him/her. Give him/her a tight hug. If you don’t have a pet, consider adopting one. Just be sure to realize the responsibility involved. When you adopt a pet, you take on the responsibility of loving, caring for and protecting that animal. More about that in a later post. Be nice to one another. Smile! Show compassion! Cheers! S.J. Francis