Imagine
As you may be aware, we’re in a lawsuit with the City of Baltimore over ownership and control of the Show Your Soft Side campaign. That means, periodically, we receive the latest court filings from the City, which has now amounted to enough paper to fill a two-inch notebook. If you’ve ever been involved in a lawsuit, you will know that the process is stressful and emotionally draining. However, the last filing evoked pure rage. Not because of the usual convoluted claims, but because the money the City is spending on legal fees to try to wrestle away something it could have used for free could be making a real difference in the lives of Baltimore’s homeless and abused animals.
Just in the past handful of weeks, one dog has been burned, multiple dogs have been found abandoned and near starvation in city vacants, a cat was shot, and one pup was found chained and partially hanging in local woods. Each of those animals has required extensive medical care – care that BARCS, or the various rescues that step forward to help, need to cover. Keeping up with the constant influx of abused, neglected and homeless animals in Baltimore is an uphill battle. Imagine the difference it could make if the City was as willing to allocate funds to help care for these animals as it is to own a public service campaign.
Earlier this week, Baltimore County announced it was setting aside $5M to build a state-of-the-art animal shelter. It’s a move that’s long overdue, but one that begs the question – when will Baltimore City do the same? BARCS continues to struggle in a substandard facility (located on a flood plain) that is busting at the seams with the more than 12,000 animals it takes in each year. Imagine the difference it could make if the City was as willing to allocate funds to help BARCS relocate to a more humane facility as it is to own a public service campaign.
Over the past year, we have posted, shared and begged on behalf of victims like Molly, Dean, Freckles, Brutus, Rita and Muffin (to name just a few), yet none of their abusers has been caught or charged. Imagine the difference it could make if the City was as willing to allocate funds to investigate animal abuse as it is to own a public service campaign.
We believe a community can be judged by the way it cares for its most vulnerable and from the horrors we see being brought into BARCS on a regular basis, Baltimore doesn’t fare very well. Imagine if the City was as passionate about ending the abuse as it is about spending money on lawyers to grab ownership of a public service campaign – a campaign that was made available to them for free.
Our mayor could help….but instead she actively hinders those who care for animals.
It would be easy for her to be a good influence, no effort at all, but I don’t think she cares at all.