By now, most Internet watchers have heard about the case of the two teenage boys -- brothers, it turns out -- in Lawton, Oklahoma, who videotaped a horrible episode of cat abuse. One of the boys filmed his brother abusing a beautiful gray cat named Dusty (pictured right). Thank God, the cat was taken away from the boys and is in the care of a veterinarian. Earlier this week, I watched the video of the poor creature being hit, thrown against a wall, smashed and thoroughly pounded. Dusty's groans of agony still echo in my head.
The sick video was posted on YouTube and received 30,000 views before YouTube pulled it off its website. The sadistic brothers posted other videos of Dusty being abused. You can still see the video on other internet Websites. Some animal rights activists actually want the public to see these videos so that people won't continue to live in a state of denial when it comes to the horrors of animal abuse.
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this story is how the 15-year-old boy who tortured Dusty was tracked down by so-called "internet vigilantes." A headline in the British Telegraph said it all: "YouTube 'cat torturer' traced by internet detectives." Thanks to the persistence of these "detectives," the abusers were caught and are now being punished.
The boy who posted the videos actually has his own Website. I've seen it. He pretty much puts his whole self out there on it -- all of his personal information. He's a teenager, he's openly gay, he claimed his grandfather abused him, he seems to love the Confederacy (how you can be gay and love the Confederacy is beyond me) and he lives in a mid-sized town (pop 92,000) in Oklahoma. In the cat abuse video, the kid wore a black mask over his head when he abused Dusty, but he has posted plenty of pictures of himself on the Internet -- including on Facebook and My Space -- for all the world to see. Also posted to his personal website are the awful videos of Dusty being beaten and abused.
If there is any silver lining to this dark cloud, it is that the tragic case of Dusty the Cat (who, luckily, survived his ordeal and will soon be adopted out to a loving home) has given a much-needed face to stories of animal cruelty that are becoming more and more commonplace.
And here's another silver lining: More and more communities are passing strict laws to prevent animal abuse. An example comes from Arkansas, where Governor Mike Beebe recently signed a law making animal torture a felony across the state. (Source) Thanks to Beebe, who was cheered by animal rights activists across the country, now abusers face steep fines and jail time. This is but one of many reasons to be hopeful.
If you don't think this is a serious problem, do yourself a favor: Go too Google News and type "cat abuse" or "dog abuse" or "animal abuse" into the subject line and see what comes up. Stories about animals being beaten, mutilated and even murdered by abusers are far too plentiful.
But you'll also see something else: Good people everywhere are busily fighting for the rights of animals. And they need advocates. As Minneapolis veterinarian Dr. Emmy Hartman -- who has seen her fair share of animal abuse cases -- put it: "Unfortunately, animals and children are most susceptible populations to abuse. They are completely vulnerable, they don't have a voice."
It is possible to measure the greatness of a society based on how its very weakest and most vulnerable members are treated. By that standard, North America -- and here I mean, the United States and Canada -- still has a little ways to go, but at least some very real progress is being made.
For a beautiful cat named Dusty, who has been through pure hell but now has a shot at living in a home where he'll be cherished and loved, the ending may turn out to be a happy one.
I think ABUSING animals is stupid.they have a right to live just like any of us.Who ever does this has a very sick mind, would you kill or beat any of your family? didn't think so.Animal are beautiful.
Posted by: Keisha Bennett | February 27, 2009 at 09:27 AM
I became a big IT freak. I started internet marketing for the last four months and still looking for material that can help my marketing.
Posted by: Jeff Paul Scam | March 03, 2009 at 01:50 AM