The rush of emotions that came over me while reading my colleague's story published in the Olds Albertan last week about abandoned kittens was overwhelming.
A mix of anger, heartache, frustration, and so much more led me to write this column.
I cannot and will never understand how someone could not only abandon a helpless animal, but to throw them in a plastic bag alive and leave them to die in a Dumpster is just horrid.
Four kittens – reportedly about five to six weeks old – were found less than a minute before entering the baling machine at the Olds waste transfer station. Two dead. Two alive.
They had been dumped in a cardboard recycling bin at the Westview Co-op grocery store in Olds and Mountain View Regional Waste Management Commission officials picked up the bin on the morning of Nov. 4.
It is reported that the kittens could have been dumped any time during the weekend of November 2 and 3, as the bins are picked up from the Co-op on Fridays and Mondays.
The operator of the baling machine found the kittens covered in feces and urine and they were shivering from being outside in the cold. They were taken to the Olds Pioneer Veterinary Centre and the two survivors were fed, bathed, cared for and put up for adoption.
In another terrible account, three kittens were thrown out of a truck on Highway 21 about five kilometres north of Kindersley, Sask. in August.
At least one of the kittens hit the windshield of the driver's vehicle that was travelling behind the truck. The driver, along with others who stopped, rescued three kittens estimated to be about eight months old. All three kittens survived, with injuries to their faces and mouths.
It is sad to say, that with all of the highway driving I do, each time I drive by a cardboard box on the side of the road a part of me wonders if it is a box full of kittens or puppies.
Why is animal abuse even an option for some?
I have always loved animals. They are beautiful, interesting and intelligent creatures that deserve to be treated as such.
It breaks my heart to hear about these incidents. I grew up with pets, including cats, and I cannot even begin to explain how much love I have for each of them.
At my parents' place in Calgary resides our family cat Link, my sister's cat Lydio and my other sister's cat, Cub. I have recently adopted two kittens of my own – Bonnie and Clyde. I brought them home almost three months ago and I love them unconditionally.
The bond between humans and pets is a different kind. It's very special. Because the thing is, they will always love their owners unconditionally in return.
No matter what you look like, what your interests are, or even if you get upset with them before you leave for work in the morning, at the end of the day, they love you. There is no feeling greater than that.
I find myself always concerned about my kittens if they seem the slightest bit uncomfortable. I cannot bear to imagine them in a plastic bag, in a Dumpster, or outside in the winter.
There are humane ways to give up pets that are unwanted.
For starters, people are always looking to adopt kittens, especially in rural areas, because barn cats are popular. Post an ad on social media, such as Facebook, or spread the word.
Take them to the local veterinary office. Call the Calgary Humane Society or other adoption agencies. But please, don't sentence them to a cruel death just because you are too irresponsible and lazy to do the right thing.
To the person or persons that did this to these helpless kittens, there is a spot reserved just for you where the sun doesn't shine.
