Today, on my birthday of all days, as we were driving home from the beach, my sister and I saw a groundhog in the road. At first, I thought it was dead, but it moved. So, I pulled over and got out to make sure it was ok. It had some blood on its paw and nose, but it seemed able to move; so it was just refusing to get out of the road because of sheer stubbornness. My sister and I didn't want it to get smashed, so we shouted at it to scare it off the road. The only problem was, it wasn't afraid of us, which means it might be sick. Regardless, we kept trying.
During our useless and slightly humorous efforts to make it move, we heard a voice shouting from somewhere to be careful because it's dangerous. Basically, he was telling us to give up on it, which seems to be the common human regard for animals in danger. I don't expect people to care as much as I do. But, I at least expect them to acknowledge that animals' lives have value too and to not discourage others from trying to help. It's cruel to drive by something that is hurt with out trying to help. When I tell people this story, or how I hand-raised a baby kitten, or nursed a baby squirrel, or feed alley cats, the typical attitude is not admiration or an acknowledgment of my kindness, but something akin to revulsion or confusion. People don't think that what I do for animals is brave, kind, or even necessary. They seem to think that animals should be left to the fate of mother nature.
The ironic thing, is that animals don't share this heartless concept. There are countless stories of animals who took care of wounded or abandoned children. I don't think a gorilla ever passed a wounded child and said, leave it, it may bite. I think we need to acknowledge that an animal life is worth saving. Those who rescue them should not be mocked or criticized, but admired.
After all, what does it hurt by helping?
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