What is Considered Animal Abuse?
Many people don't know what the real meaning of animal abuse is. Most of the time when you hear someone say animal abuse, they're talking about fighting dogs or brutally beating their dogs to the point of death. A lot of the time you see starving dogs chained up, with no food or water and no shelter; never knowing what a loving hand is or what is feels like to be loved. Animal abuse is much more than that.
Animal Cruelty is defined by the ASPCA as: Acts of violence or neglect perpetrated against animals are considered animal cruelty. Some examples are overt abuse, dog fighting and cockfighting, and denying a companion animal the basic necessities of care, such as food, water or shelter.
There are other types of cruelty not just the common terms that everybody has seen at least once in their lifetime. Other acts of cruelty are listed below as provided by the ASPCA:
Backyard Breeder: Individual whose pet either gets bred by accident, or who breeds on purpose for a variety of reasons-a desire to make extra money, for example, or to let the children witness "the miracle of birth." The animals involved are usually not tested for genetic or health.
Cockfighting: A blood sport in which two roosters specifically bred for aggressiveness are placed beak to beak in a small ring and encouraged to fight to the death.
Ear Cropping: The cropping of a purebred dog's ears to conform to a breed standard. Although this unnecessary cosmetic surgery is regularly performed by some veterinarians, it is often done by untrained individuals, without anesthesia, in unsterile environments.
Declawing: The act of surgically amputating the entire distal phalanx, or end bone, of an animal's toes. The surgery is non-reversible, and the animal suffers significant pain during recovery. Declawing has been outlawed in many countries in Europe.
Felony Cruelty: Animal cruelty is a crime in all 50 states. But in most states, certain extreme acts of animal cruelty can result felony-level penalties, which are more severe than misdemeanor penalties.
Hog-Dog Fighting (also called Hog-Baiting or Hog-Dog Rodeos): A blood sport in which a hog or feral pig is mauled by a trained fighting dog in an enclosed pen. Because its legality, as determined by state anti-cruelty laws, can be vague, many states, particularly in the American South where hog-dog fighting is more common, have passed laws specifically criminalizing it
Intentional Cruelty: Intentional cruelty occurs when an individual purposely inflicts physical harm or injury on an animal; usually an indicator of a serious human behavior problem.
Neglect: The failure to provide an animal with the most basic of requirements of food, water, shelter and veterinary care. Neglect is often the result of simple ignorance on the animal owner's part and is usually handled by requiring the owner to correct the situation.
Puppy Mill/Kitty Mill: Breeding facilities that produce large numbers of purebred dogs and cats. The animals are regularly sold to pet shops across the country. Documented problems of puppy mills include overbreeding, inbreeding, poor veterinary care and overcrowding.
Tail Banding: A method of docking an animal's tail in which a rubber band or similar ligature is wrapped tightly around the tail at the desired point of removal. This cuts off the blood supply to the end of the tail, which atrophies and usually falls away after a few days. Banding is legal in the United States, and is frequently practiced by laypersons on dairy cows.
Tail Docking: The cutting of a purebred dog's tail to conform to a breed standard. Although this unnecessary cosmetic surgery is regularly performed by some veterinarians, it is often done by untrained individuals, without anesthesia, in unsterile environments.
Tethering: The act of chaining/tieing an animal, usually a dog, to a stationary object as a primary means of confinement. Tethering is a risk factor for aggressive behavior and dog bites.
You see, cruelty happens in more than one form, and a lot of the times more than one act of cruelty is committed each and every time. So love your pets, adopt a pet, and please don't buy!! Please SPAY AND NEUTER as this is the only way to help reduce the euthanasia rates in the United States and to put puppy mill breeders out of business!! The health benefits of spaying and neutering are also better as it completely rids the chances of getting diseases and cancers related to the reporoductive organs! So again, please spay and neuter.
If you ever see an act of violence against any animal, please report it to the authorities immediately!!!