that is the question....and how the hell am i to know the answer to that without a lot of truthful background information?
and here is the thing in animal rescue...good luck with that!
people never tell the truth on why they are dumping their pet..they have to fudge it up a little or a lot so they aren't the bad or utterly stupid guys in this. it then becomes our job in rescue to practice fair diligence to make sure whatever decisions we make are in the best interests of the ultimate victims in all of this.
so this is how it SHOULD have gone for jimmy...jimmy grows old, jimmy goes blind and deaf..jimmy starts dumping a ton of weight...jimmy SHOULD have gone to the vet. and there jimmy should have been party to a good examination, maybe some bloodwork and tests and a very honest and real discussion about possible options to improve his quality of life OR to kindly and lovingly and peacefully help him to pass.
but that is not what happened for jimmy....he gets dumped at a newly formed, in transition, animal control and they aren't set up forhim, and they don't know what is best for him because they do not know the dog. so they call us and we step in as is our mandate to help jimmy find whatever it is that is right for him.
but we have to start with a very old, disabled and weak, little, and totally unknown dog and discover what are the possibilities for him. maybe he needs to be put down so the poor little bugger can after many long years finally have some peace...maybe he just needs some simple medications so he can live his life feeling better and and enjoying some things.
what sucks is that jimmy comes in late on a saturday on a weekend that i am working afternoon shifts...our vets are closed, i was up several times during the night changing his bed of vomit, urine and feces..not knowing if jimmy in the end will actually appreciate this.
should jimmy have been saved or not? who the hell knows? all i do know is...if his owners had practiced due diligence on his behalf...
he never would have needed to be rescued in the first place.
poor jimmy.
When I hear of creatures like Jimmy, I despair. But then I try to think of all the really, really great pet owners out there who do look after their animals properly... and I think of all the kind, loving volunteers and staff at SAINTS and other rescues and shelters who step up and give these animals the care they deserve.