Assuming your responsibility.

Some human beings are amazing, wondrous creations of light and goodness.

Now that I've spent my positivity for the day, I'll get skeptical. Some days I wade through the tidepool of mankind's arrogant, selfish, fuck-you-ism and feel like I can barely pull my feet out of the muck at the bottom.  Mostly it's when I'm cleaning up messes that other people leave, namely animals left to die at the overpopulated shelters in the city of Los Angeles. 

On Thursday of last week, I hesitantly dragged myself into the East Valley Shelter in Van Nuys to video a cat for a potential adopter. It's the easiest way to get these poor, wretched animals out of the hellhole cages, and so at times, I find myself trying to unsee what I see in there.  Thursday just wasn't my day, because as I walked back and forth with a volunteer trying to find "Mistletoe" the Christmas present that "didn't work out," I couldn't help but notice a little black dog that was noticing me.

"She's staring at you," the volunteer noticed.  "Shut up," I responded. 

After going back and forth five more times, it was clear that this little dog WAS actually staring at me, not making a peep.  The other dogs around her are going nuts, barking, growling, howling, hiding, wagging, pouncing---it's like a kid's book full of dog verbs, but without a positive ending.  I tried to ignore her, even as I saw a staffer pull her from her kennel mournfully. I knew I shouldn't ask, but I questioned, "Is she getting adopted?" He looked at me, his eyes deeply sorrowful, and all he could do was mutter, "no."  Still, I felt that I should ignore her.



Bonham



Here's why:  I have two dogs already, Frito La Chihu-hu and Bonham Von Rotterdane, both of them from shelters, both pulled hours before they died by lethal injection. One of them from Riverside, one of them from North Central Los Angeles.  They were both complete pains in the ass when I adopted them, untrained, sick, scared, scarred...and it tookmonths of treatment and training and patience beyond belief and lots of lots of money, don't forget that, to make them into the fabulous, amazing, gentle, sweet, and confident dogs they are today. 



Frito



In between the two I have now, there was Dexy Stormcloud the German Shepherd---who I adopted as a senior (left to die at the shelter because she had a tumor growing in her stomach and infected sores on her elbows) so she wouldn't have to die on a cold steel table.  After a year of treats and training and medical treatment, lots of love, a warm bed, and toys...she got to peacefully pass under her favorite tree in my backyard...with her head on my lap.  I'm not even going into a discussion about the cats. There have been many, many cats, and several foster dogs including Bowie BooBoo, the pitt bull/great dane mix, Squishilina Dandelion the jindo/husky mix, and Berkeley Voodoo the whatever in god's name he was. Most important of all was Circe Taurus Izaboo, who taught me how to be a nurse for 12 years, served as my first lesson in rescue, and opened up a lifelong hole in my wallet.

These dogs were dropped off to die by their owners, becoming the taxpayers' responsibility. Then, by some twist of fate, they became MY responsibility...to clean up after you, whoever you are, with time and money and love.  I took over your responsibility to these animals, and it makes me sick for mankind.



Joplin enjoys her freedom.



I now have three dogs, because as I saw the little black Am Staff/lab mix trot happily next to the shelter staffer, completely oblivious to what came next, I couldn't ignore her anymore. She came home with me that day instead of being turned into fertilizer for our public parks and medians.  I try not to think of the ones I left behind, because it breaks my heart. I think of my new baby, Janis Joplin Baby Pibbles.

(Yes, you may have noticed the ridiculous names. I'm sure the people at Avid Microchipping get a huge guffaw at these monikers...and quite frankly, most days I  just need a good laugh.)

One more animal lives because I took responsibility for someone else's bad decisions. I'm not sainting myself here, because I could do more and help more and give more. I just find myself skeptically retreating towards the back of my kennel like an abandoned dog that has given up hope in the human race...wondering why the fuck-you-ism has become so pervasive, and why so many people feel it's okay to have everyone else clean up after them. 

Skeptically Yours.