Pets are also entitled to happiness

[Guest guest]

The below article is published in Jungang Daily

Newspaper in Korea on the 13th of November, 2003. It

is part of Sunnan’s reply to a letter published in the

‘After reading Jungang Ilbo’ section in the same

newspaper.

 

My sincere thanks to Kim Singer for his yet another

beautiful proofreading.

 

 

Pets are also entitled to happiness

 

I wish to state my objection to Daenam Kim’s letter

‘Individual tastes in relation to pet dogs’ published

on the 7th of November in the ‘After reading Jungang

Ilbo’ section. Animals are living, sentient creatures

- just as we are. They, too, are entitled to have a

chance to enjoy their lives, to breathe fresh, clean

air, to walk free and to revel in the beauty that is

nature – just like us humans.

 

It is wrong to deny all dogs the right to enjoy a walk

simply because there may be a few irresponsible

owners. The lives of many responsible and considerate

people are greatly enriched by the keeping of pets,

without their animals causing any problems at all for

neighbours. It is therefore completely inappropriate

and unfair to implement an indiscriminate walking ban

on everyone who chooses to keep an animal.

 

Daenam Kim asks “What’s the point of making people pay

a fine after their dogs cause a problem?” How then

does he suggest we should manage – without fines - to

prevent people from causing harm to others? In any

event, do we really suffer that much harm because of

animals? Isn’t it rather the case that it is humans

who are the cause of so much of the suffering that

animals are also subject to? I suggest that it is an

illustration of the enormity of human selfishness to

insist that it causes disgust to see animals in public

places – the same animals, let us remember, who are

considered beloved members of many family groups.

 

Daenam Kim also claims that our pet culture is immoral

because it encourages the spaying and neutering of

animals. Does he not appreciate that, if we are to

prevent over-population, some form of control is

necessary - even for humans. Who does he think will

look after so many animals if we follow his example

and refuse to spay and neuter our pets?

 

Leaving animals aside, there are actually some people

who clearly cause disgust and invoke fear among people

when they appear in public places. No one is

suggesting that these people should also be banned

from public parks. Why, then, do some people insist on

having a law that prohibits dogs from entering the

parks? Such a law would be an abuse of power – one

that is based on contempt for the weak and

defenceless.

 

Sunnan Kum,

President

Korea Animal Protection Society

 

=====

Friends of dogs

http://www.friendsofdogs.net

Dogs brighten our life with their gift of love. It is our turn to help our dogs.

Please help organisations who are fighting to get dogs out of the food chain.

 

http://www.koreananimals.org/

http://www.animalsasia.org/

http://www.linisgobyerno.org/special_projects.htm

 

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