Lions, Tigers and Bears, Oh My!

I don't know if you remember the story about a guy who let all his animals loose then committed suicide? It was October last year in Ohio. The police ended up killing the majority of them and, of course, the pictures were all over the news about how the police had slain these innocent animals needlessly.

Being the kind of tree-hugging hippy, Wiccan earth mother that I am, I did wonder if there was maybe some other action that could have been taken. I mean come on, surely the Muskingum County Sheriff's office could have called Snow White to charm all the animals back into their small cages?

Unfortunately Snow White wasn't available and it wasn't bluebirds and bunnies it was lions and tigers and bears and monkeys and wolves...... That kind of puts a different slant on it.

Anyway, I'm not here to judge whether what Sheriff Lutz, Deputy Merry, a SWAT team and zoo specialist type people did or did not do wrong. I'm after all, sitting on a couch, looking out my window to the sun, I'm not in the pitch dark, being stalked by a 400lb hungry, pissed off lion knowing that even with my asthma inhaler, there is no way I'd ever be able to outrun it....

I'm sorry, but self preservation would probably take over and I'm not sure I could put all my hope & prayers to what ever goddess or god you believe in, that the big kitty would want to play with a ball of wool and not my head.

So, why am I blogging about this now? Well Terry Thompson's widow, Marian got the surviving 2 monkeys, a brown bear and 2 leopards back from quarantine. When they were released from the Ohio Zoo, she promptly took them back to the farm where her husband and other animals died.

To me that has quite a high ick factor, but never mind, I'm not here to judge her actions. I'll admit that I think of my GSD as my fur-baby, I like a cuddle at her but she is a domesticated animal, not a bloody leopard. Having a dog sleep on your bed, isn't quite the same as keeping a monkey in a bird cage, cuddling a full grown bear and sharing your bed with a lion.

My concern is with the animals safety, security and welfare. I am no animal expert but when I saw where these 'exotic animals' were being kept, I didn't consider it to be right. I don't think they are living in very secure or very big cages and I know for certain I wouldn't be happy living next door in case my son became lunch for a bear.

It's ironic that though that someone is able to keep these exotic animals in unsavoury conditions and they can't be taken from her, however if Marian Thompson had a pitbull, it could be removed from her care through Ohio's BSL law.

It's horrible to think that 18 tigers, 17 lions, 8 bears, 3 cougars, 2 wolves and 2 monkeys died that dark October night in 2011, it wasn't their fault, they were doing what comes naturally. What I think is more the issue is the conditions they were kept in.

For the background story go to www.esquire.com/features/zanesville-0312

http://blog.nativefoods.com/nativefoods/2011/10/lions-and-tigers-and-bearsohio.html

A Christmas Wish: Boycie Wants a Home

It will soon be Christmas and although we are probably all very familiar with Dickens’s story ‘A Christmas Carol’ or any of its variants, in this economy it is very easy to think more about yourself than others that are perhaps less well off.

But isn’t that what Christmas is about? The time of year where your really should think of others, give up on your own ignorance and greed to help those in need. You see sometimes the cruelty of humans amazes me; I just fail to see what they get out of it.

Bearing all this in mind, when I came across the story of Boycie I felt the need to do what I can to help him out.

Like or hate dogs, you can’t condone cruelty towards them or any animal. So whether you consider our canine friends to be smelly, messy or taking up too much time I would loath to think that you would actually do them harm?

This brings me back to the story of Boycie.

You see I watch a lot of Criminal Minds on television and one theme that appears to run through it is how your past affects your future.


But its strange because that doesn’t always happen with dogs, take Michael Vick’s Pit Bulls from Bad Newz Kennels for example, out of the 70 dogs that were found at his kennels 48 dogs survived and have been re-homed after being used in dog fights, as bait dogs for dog fighting, neglected or abused.

These dogs, like Boycie aren’t the bad guys here; they are the victims who are willing to trust us humans again. They want to be loved, cuddled and wait patiently at the front door for you to come back home again complete with a wagging tail and smiley face for you.

Boycie’s rubbish beginning wasn’t his fault; he didn’t ask to be abused, neglected and live in a crack den. Would you fancy that idea? Or would every day you cower in the corner wishing to be invisible and hope that this life wasn’t as good as it gets?

Luckily Boycie was rescued from that situation and given medical treatment, love, care and attention and thanks to these people he is no longer afraid, skinny or malnourished. Boycie is a survivor.

Boycie is still very young and at about 2yr old still has many years of life left in him. You wouldn’t need to take Boycie with you every where you go, though you could if you wanted, because he is perfectly happy being left alone for a few hours.

Like many rescue dogs, Boycie desperately wants to make you happy, whether it is being all cuddly or running about daft, chasing a ball in a field. Boycie is really clever too; after all, he managed to survive a horrible situation so any type of training will be a breeze.


To me, Boycie sounds perfect, good fun, willing to learn, likes a cuddle, doesn’t mind other dogs (unless they are really scary) and really appreciates the fact that he has come out of hell alive and well.

If you are thinking about doing the right thing, Boycie is in the Home Counties, but don’t let that put you off him if you are at the other end of the country. How far would you go for the love of you life? Many say to hell and back, Boycie has been there and can make sure that you don’t have to.


This blog is about giving, giving Boycie a chance at life, in my mind he has already proved he is a winner. Perhaps Boycie could bring out the winner in you too? Do something powerful, make a statement to the world that you have done something positive in 2011. You are someone’s hero.

If you want to chat about Boycie, ask some questions, meet him, take him for a walk or give him a cuddle and chew stick Email Boycie_needs_a_home@hotmail.co.uk or https://www.facebook.com/BoycieNeedsahome want to see how Michael Vicks dogs survived? http://badrapor.www65.a2hosting.com/home

There is one point to remember though; yeah it’s the season of goodwill and thinking about others and their welfare so that goes two ways. Don’t think that if you take Boycie or any other rescue dog home you are on your own, every decent rescue organisation will give you a follow up call to make sure that all is well and answer any questions you may have. They will also give you any help or advice you need at any point…..