Bleats – against animal cruelty

Posted on January 22nd, 2008

Archived in Australiana, Environment

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I have written about Animal Cruelty before and here again I got a lovely little something from Liz that echoes my thoughts. I much rather quote:

As a devoted animal lover I was saying to Mark how lenient the sentences are for animal cruelty. For someone to kill an animal & to be banned from having another for a short period of time i.e. 2 or 3 years is not enough, they should be banned for life! I wished there was something I could do then came across a magazine article about a group of dedicated Brisbane lawyers & a senior counsel who have formed BLEATS (Brisbane Lawyers Educating and Advocating for Tougher Sentences).

Would you please sign this worthwhile petition to support tougher sentences against animal cruelty and forward onto your friends & family for their signature.

prosecutions in 2005-2006BLEATS‘ mail initiative being their major aim is to focus attention on the apparent unwillingness or seeming inability of Magistrates to wield their powers under the Animal Care and Protection Act 2001.

Prosecutions

Statistics from RSPCA alone in 2005-2006 shows a disturbing trend. Your support of the petition would surely help.

Download the PDF for more information from RSPCA.

  • Harry

    I have signed it and YES, i would support harsher punishment! definitely! As you all may know, i am an avid animal lover! can’t stand cruelty to animals!

  • Ellen Ash

    Surely fining an elderly woman $50,000 [fifty thousand dollars] because she was ill in hospital and unable to care for her cattle sufficiently for a short time, is a severe enough penalty! This penalty was handed down today – 22 Jan 2008! What about equal fines for people who ruin the lives of young human beings by deliberately getting them addicted to drugs? They get off almost scot free! Let’s also think about the lightweight sentences given for murder of human beings. It’s all very well to fine people who are deliberately cruel to animals but the penalties for farmers suffering severe drought, working their souls out and being persecuted, NOT HELPED by RSPCA which wrongly claims that it cares for all creatures great and small! It does not. RSPCA IS HAPPY TO SHOW ITSELF RESCUING LITTLE KITTENS OR PUPS BUT DOES NOT HELP FARM ANIMALS.

  • Ellen Ash

    Penalties for cruelty to animals are already far above the penalties given to drug pushers and murderers. Farmers struggling to keep animals alive during droughts, when it can be extremely difficult to procure sufficient feed [which is very costly and hard to get in a prolonged drought] are not helped at all by RSPCA. This organisation has a slogan that it cares for all creatures great and small, yet it will shoot cows and leave little calves without mothers. A very ill female farmer was today fined fifty thousand dollars because she was ill in hospital and unable to supplement the natural grasses with additional feed. $50, 000 is just PART of her penalty.

  • Sandra

    The penalties allowed for in law are already more than sufficient to deal with cruelty to animals. In fact the laws often go to far as caring and responsible pet owners and farmers are frequently becoming criminalised both in Australia and the rest of the world. Most magistrates are of the belief that the RSPCA are the experts in animal welfare (which they most certainly are not)and accept their evidence at face value, however distorted.

    Unfortunately people like Harry believe that just because they “can’t stand cruelty” that they should also support this kind of misguided lobbying which, if successful, just puts more power in the hands of those unfit to use it, while doing nothing whatsoever to help animals

  • Mellissa

    There should be a more indepth investigation into how and why an animal has been mistreated before a verdict and punishment is decided. In cases of those that inflict pain and suffering for amusement or laziness, the full fines and jail sentences should be used. A portion of the money from those fines, could be put towards farmers to help with the lack of resources for food. This way both animal welfare groups and farmers with starving cattle can benefit from larger fines. This will also be an incentive for the courts to push tougher penaltys.

  • Natalie

    I agree with Melissa – dated 21 Feb, 2008 is right when she says we need more indepth investigations before handing out verdicts & punishments to determine if the pain & suffering inflicted on the animal was intentional or avoidable.
    In cases where animal cruelty is/was avoidable & they had prior knowledge OR if it was intentional in ANYWAY then YES i fully agree with that person recieving no less than a $50,000 Fine and/or Jail time. But definately not if the case was unintentional or unavoidable
    However having said that i am a believer that prevention of animal cruelty (where possible) is better than a cure.

    Just For Example – Look at the all the dog attacks reported all over the news.
    Dogs don’t attack for no reason. It is usually due to the animal being provoked, mistreated or just neglected all together.
    Its the way a dog is brought up & cared for and also its environment that determines whether that dog is aggresive & dangerous NOT the BREED of dog.
    But instead of putting laws in place, making it compusary for animal carers & owners to be properly educated with a license, much like what is required when owning or caring for an exotic bird or reptile, lazy authorties instead blame dog attacks on the breed of dog.

    Again, profits raised from the sale of licences in addition to funds recieved from heavier penalties could then be contributed towards both animal welfare groups & drought stricken farmers to name a few.

    Come on guys, Why should animals recieve any less rights just because they can’t voice things for themselves?

  • Meischa

    I think that the laws for penalties against animal cruelty should be worse because people shouldnt hurt those animals like using a live cat or dog for shark bait why dont you just ckuck your daughter or son in aswell and see how they feel……..

    an animals life has no less meaning then a human life and even though humans are horrible diseases that just ravage this land and destroy everything they touch some ( underline some ) humans actually treat animals the way they should be treated …………..

    if you havnt already got the idea i LOVE animals and would never hurt one on perpose they are living creatures as well……..

    thanks for reading and thank you for this little place to write a comment……

  • Suzanne

    There is a general attitude of disrespect for others in many parts of our community. Our voiceless animals are suffering and we should start with showing respect for our children. Courts need to show that neglect and cruelty will not be tolerated. Who is going to set the example? Ethics need to be taught to many adults yet we wonder why children are so confused morally and have no respect. No animal should suffer. The system is wrong, puppy farmers are everywhere. Yesterday I attempted to get Justice for a dead victim of puppy farming and the Legal System failed again. That is because there is no compassion and total complaisancy from Magistrates. Shame.

  • Kanchana Pethiyagoda

    Simply speaking: Lets eradicate Animal Cruelty from the face of Earth!!!

  • Lauren

    Here Here! I completely agree with Kanchana Pethiyagoda.

  • Joan Overeem

    As an animal lover I would like to know if any of you RSPCA supporters can tell me how it could ever be called being “kind” to shoot drought-thin but very healthy animals – including many who were very successfully feeding their healthy babies?

  • Andrew

    Might be a late response, but I have to ask if Kanchana and Lauren live in a city or town with cute puppy dogs and cats?

    Rural life with working animals that provide the feed stock for the hamburgers they eat at MacDonalds.

    Do we all now go vegetarian and wait for the Vegetable Rights Groups to stick their heads up?

  • Tamara Kingi

    We are advocating tougher sentances for people who mistreat animals!

    Yes murderers sometimes get off free but compare that to the millions & millions of helpless voiceless animals man kind have murdered tortured neglected & got away scott free without a blink of an eye, it doesn’t even compare.

    At the end of the day people need to use common sense and think “what if this happened to my pet, someone i loved or me?”
    our world is full of ignorant people & its up to us to educate & stand up for the rights of our animals.

    its sad that someone can slaughter a dog or cat to death and the worst that they’ll get is a couple of weeks community service and a small fine. thats not justice. its sad that in order to get the maximum penalty you have to neglect a whole herd of animals.

    we still need to make HUGE changes and realise each individual case of ignorance neglect & murder is treated the same.

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