By Susan Ciancio
I read a story this weekend about a Florida woman who drove to an animal shelter and attempted to get its staff to euthanize her dog. When the facility refused, she shoved the dog into the trunk of her car and left. Fortunately for the dog, an eyewitness saw her actions and reported her to the police.
According to the article:
[Sara] Perry was taken into custody on charges of felony animal abuse “for the despicable way she treated this poor, helpless pet,” the sheriff said.
“The abuse of this innocent pet makes absolutely no sense and can only be attributed to someone who has zero compassion for animals, and, quite frankly, shouldn’t be allowed to even own a plant, much less a pet,” [Sheriff Wayne] Ivey said in a Facebook video.
It is disgusting what some people will do to a helpless animal. And the indignation of readers who responded in the comments after the article shows that people are truly horrified by her behavior. In fact, many people wondered what happened to the dog (who is now safe) and volunteered to take him in.
But after reading this, I couldn’t help but wonder where that indignation is for preborn babies. I want to shout out to the world and ask, Why is it my “right” to kill my preborn baby—a human being and flesh of my flesh—yet it’s a felony to put a dog in a hot car trunk? Don’t get me wrong. I agree that animal cruelty is terrible and that the woman should face charges. Her behavior is inexcusable. But you have to see the disparity here between how people view pets and how people view babies.
How can our society feel such anger at a woman for hurting an animal, yet fight so fiercely for the “right” of a woman to allow her baby to be torn limb from limb in an abortion? Where is the logic in this? Where is the compassion for a baby who cannot scream or cry out for himself? And where is the justice for this little one who is so cruelly deprived of his life?
The sheriff in this story lamented at the “despicable way” Perry treated “this poor, helpless pet.” I, too, lament that. But shouldn’t we all lament what is done day in and day out in abortion facilities? Every day in the US, 3,000 babies die in abortions (that number does not include abortions that happen as a result of contraception). Three thousand babies! It’s a staggering number.
We need to get our priorities straight. Yes, we must treat animals with kindness and compassion because God calls us to care for the animals He put on this Earth. But, if we are called to care for animals, how much more fiercely does Christ call us to care for the human beings He created in His image and likeness? We must have indignation for their deaths too. And this indignation must lead to action. The babies are counting on us.