Animal

Growing up, one of my neighbors was a cat lady. She took care of strays, and  volunteered at a local animal shelter. Mrs Meeks encouraged me to get involved as a small child, and it's become a life long passion. She taught me how to make a shelter for feral and stray cats, to help protect them from both heat and cold. If you are interested in making one, there are some great instructions here: http://www.daneferals.org/info/file?file=12761.pdf

I have one made out of a styrofoam cooler on the side of my house. It's super easy to make, just cutting a hole on the front and filing with hay. I leave food in it, and check it periodically. So far this winter, we haven't had any visitors. 

From the Kickstarter page of A Dog Named Gucci

As time went on, I continued to volunteer at animal shelters. Behind each animal was a story, and it would break my heart knowing that some never found a fur ever home. I wanted to take care of them all. Sometimes there would be some that would come in who had obviously been abused. At that time, neither Utah or New Jersey had strong animal abuse laws. In fact, most states did not. This allowed abusers to receive the same level of sentencing as driving without insurance or writing a bad check. 

That began to change with the passage of Gucci's Law in Alabama. In fact, Gorman Bechard (director & creative force behind the fabulous Replacements documentary, Color Me Obsessed) recently finished a Kickstarter campaign for his new movie A Dog Named Gucci, which details the amazing life of an incredible dog.

<iframe width="480" height="360" src="http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/gormanbechard/a-dog-named-gucci-a-film-about-ending-animal-abuse/widget/video.html" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"> </iframe>

Recently, three horrific abuse cases have again shone the spotlight on the need for strict punishment for perpetrators. The case of Sammy the Cocker Spaniel 

From the Sammy the Cocker Spaniel's Facebook page

and Heaven the Pit Bull, both in New Jersey, have happy endings. 

Both dogs survived insurmountable odds and have made enough of a recovery to be adopted. Their abusers have been convicted and sentenced to jail time (in both cases, they are free on appeal). Puppy Doe in Boston was not so lucky.

She was so badly hurt that she needed to be euthanized. Her abuser is in jail, currently awaiting trial.

Currently, South Dakota is th ONLY state without felony animal cruelty laws. Several years ago, a man in Burbank, SD beat his neighbor's dog to death in its kennel with a hammer. His punishment? A fine of $300. There is a movement working to change that, with SB 46, being introduced this legislative session. For more information on the campaign, go here: http://www.sdfact.org/uploads/1/3/3/9/13394064/2014_fact_sheet_sd_animal_cruelty_-_sd_fact.pdf

Help make this bill a law. There is a proven correlation between animal cruelty and abuse against others. It could save a life.