I did not stay
I walked away
I don't know why
I let it die
The other day I was walking by a garbage dumpster. I heard a tiny little cry in there, so I tried to follow the sound. I had to move some garbage around. I found a tiny little baby puppy maybe just a few hours old. I don't know if the mother had birthed it in the dumpster or if someone had thrown it away. I lean towards the latter. It was a very hot day and it was sweltering in the bin. Babies and heat don't mix.
I touched it's little head and it stopped crying for a second. In a flash, a hundred concerns passed through my head. I live in a foreign country and don't feel I have the skills yet to even meet all of my own needs. How can I care for this tiny little thing? Where do I buy it special milk, a syringe or nipple to feed it with? I know very little about my surroundings still. Where is a vet? When I travel, who will watch it for me? If I love it, and it dies, will I survive the heart break?
In Albania, as in most developing countries, I see dead dogs in the street or dying in the gutter. Dogs with no hair or crippled or starving. Animals are not taken care of and are disposed of as garbage. They don't spay or neuter. It's a harsh reality, and I've learned to build protection around my heart when I see a suffering animal. Protection of my heart is a survival tool I learned in Africa. It was there I saw so much death, disease, abuse, and torture. Protect my heart or die of sadness.
I cried for a minute, petting its head. Then I made a decision to let it go. I decided not to prolong its suffering. I walked away. I did not stay. I let it die....
I walked away
I don't know why
I let it die
The other day I was walking by a garbage dumpster. I heard a tiny little cry in there, so I tried to follow the sound. I had to move some garbage around. I found a tiny little baby puppy maybe just a few hours old. I don't know if the mother had birthed it in the dumpster or if someone had thrown it away. I lean towards the latter. It was a very hot day and it was sweltering in the bin. Babies and heat don't mix.
I touched it's little head and it stopped crying for a second. In a flash, a hundred concerns passed through my head. I live in a foreign country and don't feel I have the skills yet to even meet all of my own needs. How can I care for this tiny little thing? Where do I buy it special milk, a syringe or nipple to feed it with? I know very little about my surroundings still. Where is a vet? When I travel, who will watch it for me? If I love it, and it dies, will I survive the heart break?
In Albania, as in most developing countries, I see dead dogs in the street or dying in the gutter. Dogs with no hair or crippled or starving. Animals are not taken care of and are disposed of as garbage. They don't spay or neuter. It's a harsh reality, and I've learned to build protection around my heart when I see a suffering animal. Protection of my heart is a survival tool I learned in Africa. It was there I saw so much death, disease, abuse, and torture. Protect my heart or die of sadness.
I cried for a minute, petting its head. Then I made a decision to let it go. I decided not to prolong its suffering. I walked away. I did not stay. I let it die....
What makes you think animals are disposed of as garbage in Albania? These stray dogs are not former pets, there were not abandoned - they exist because the infrastructure that dealt with them has basically evaporated. People take these dogs in all the time, and they care for them. All the pets in my Albanian family were rescue dogs.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I've been here for a few days now, and I've moved around a bit, but I am yet to see a dead or dying dog lying anywhere. How often do you see this?
Unwanted puppies and kittens are disposed of routinely. It is common knowledge. Maybe you are a visitor to Albania. I live here. I see a dead dog somewhere at least once a week. Everyday, though, I see a hairless, or diseased, or limping, or starving, or injured dog in my neighborhood. They are NOT taken in by families, cared for or fed!! There was never a support network for them. There are no "pet shelters". They exist because they are not neutered and they run wild in neighborhoods going through the garbage looking for food. They are not mean, in fact, they are kind and want attention and love and food. It is a sad thing.
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