Late last month the ASPCA issued a press release regarding an alleged 2007 art exhibition in Nicaragua by Costa Rican artist Guillermo Habacuc Vargas, in which the artist reportedly chained a dog to a corner of a gallery, leaving the dog to slowly starve to death without any food or water, in the name of art. You find this attitude towards animals in economically challenged areas where you can almost believe that ignorance plays a large role in their treatment of animals but I don’t understand what happened here. This is an art gallery that caters to the wealthy of Nicaragua. No one knows what happened to the dog, but public outcry is starting to build because the artist is apparently planning future exhibitions depicting the same inhumane treatment of other strays. At this time there are no laws in Nicaragua to prevent him doing so. While the ASPCA is an organization within the United States only, they are a member of the WSPA (The World Society for the Protection of Animals) and supports the WSPA positions on international animal welfare-related issues. According to ASPCA discussions with WSPA officials, when Vargas was invited to compete in an art show in Honduras this year, WSPA and member society the Honduras Association for the Protection of Animals and their Environment (AHPRA) acted to ensure this cruelty could not be repeated by any artist. The WSPA also indicated it will strengthen its efforts to enact stronger animal protection laws in Nicaragua. To say that I’m stunned that it wasn’t public outcry at the time of the original exhibition that closed it down is an understatement. We must have laws in place to put the bite into our ability to stop cruelties such as this. This man makes his living selling his artwork to the wealthy, and ultimately his audience should have been the ones to demand a higher regard for that poor defenseless dog. The thought of what this says about mankind and the direction the world is going is appalling. And it’s not as if we can sit back in the US and think we’re doing a better job than other nations. You only have to think back to Michael Vick and his dog fighting ring to know it is all around us and it affects all levels of society. I urge everyone that is troubled by what I’ve reported here today to visit the ASPCA’s website, www.fightcruelty.org, set up specifically to teach us how to recognize abuse, and take the pledge to fight animal cruelty in our communities. It will take every one of us to make a difference, and with the internet it has become easier than ever to become educated in what to look for so we can once and for all wipe animal abuse out of our neighborhoods.
Don’t forget to visit www.FidoFinder.com to vote for the Randolph County Humane Society as your favorite shelter. If Monroe County can win the $1000 shelter donation month after month I’m sure the Randolph County folks will want to get in there and help out our local no-kill shelter. Who’d have thought you could help the animals without ever leaving your chair, and the best part is it doesn’t cost a thing except a moment of your time. Speaking of how we can help our local shelter, Father’s Day is coming up June 15th and if you are having difficulty thinking of what you can buy to honor that very special man this year, how about making a donation to the Randolph County Humane Society in his name. I can’t think of a better way of honoring the love that is dad than by helping a shelter dog attain their ultimate destiny in bringing love to the world.
