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No matter who you are, it is safe to say your furry friend, if you have one, is the light of your life. They’d do anything for you, and you do everything for them. But what happens when the best friend you’ve ever had was hurt?
We have lived around animal cruelty for a long time, and it still remains a harsh reality. Our sweet angels aren’t able to speak up to make the abuse stop, so it is up to us. This is where animal cruelty prevention comes in, and this is where we come in.
What Is Animal Cruelty?
Defined as “acts of violence or neglect perpetrated against animals”, generally, animal cruelty is divided into two categories: intentional cruelty and acts of neglect.(1)
Intentional cruelty consists of physical abuse to the animal whereas acts of neglect include denying basic care and necessities.
Signs of Animal Cruelty
While animal cruelty is visible in many ways, there are several noticeable conditions that raise concern and can lead to legal action.(2)
- Physical Injuries Noticeable wounds, severe matting and manage, signs of starvation like visible bones, and open sores are all obvious signs of an abused animal.
- Abandonment Pay attention to animals’ signs of distress. While they are unable to speak, animals can express their anxiety and stress through whining, howling, or barking. If there are consistent audible signals, urgent care is most likely required.
- Aggressive Behavior While all acts of aggression do not indicate abuse is taking place, behaviors like hiding, cowering, and fear-biting, especially around an owner, could suggest abuse is taking place.
- Animal Hoarding Too many animals on one property is a sign of animal hoarding, which leads to cruelty, neglect, and abandonment.
What Are the Animal Cruelty Laws?
In the United States, each state varies on animal cruelty laws and how animal abuse is reported.
In civil cases, if a person is ruled to have been abusive, the animal may be taken away and a fine will be ordered.
For criminal cases, a person could face penalties including jail, fines, or both.
For Texas, both civil and criminal laws help to protect animals from cruelty. However, their criminal laws only apply to domesticated animals, like house pets or livestock. According to the Texas Penal Code, the following actions define cruel punishment to an animal: (3)
- Torture
- Abandonment
- Cruel transportation
- Death or serious injury
- Tripping a horse
- Overworking
- Failing to provide proper necessities of care.
How to Stop Animal Cruelty/Raising Awareness
The best way to stop animal cruelty and keep it from happening is to recognize signs of mistreatment, report animal abuse, and help raise awareness to make a change.
If you see an animal being abused, or notice signs of abuse, call a local animal welfare agency immediately. Reporting cruelty is the first step in helping our furry loved ones.
In addition, raising mass awareness will be the quickest way to promote the prevention of animal abuse. Parents and educators can do this by teaching children how to safely interact with animals, as well as informing them on ways to tell if an animal is in harm or at risk. Also, spread the message with social media! Contact animal shelters and agencies, volunteer, start a fundraiser to help these local shelters. You can even wear a wristband to raise awareness and end the violence.
Final Thoughts on Animal Cruelty
We must stand up for those that can’t. In order to stop animal cruelty, we must unite together to keep our beloved animals out of harm’s way. To promote your awareness, order your prevent animal cruelty custom wristband today at Rapid Wristbands.
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