Do the commercials on T.V. about abused animals rip your heart out?

Not anymore. I’ve seen them for years now.

They bother me as well. How anyone can abuse an animal or a human is beyond me.
Oh by the way, we didn’t get off to a good start. How about I reintroduce myself: I’m adirondackwannabe and welcome to fluther.

As an animal lover, I hate to see any animal abused.

As a human, the commercials irritate the hell out of me. They’re annoying. Thank goodness for the DVR.

@Adirondackwannabe Thank you so much. I am sorry I offended you. I have cats, dogs AND kids, I can’t see it either.

Say it ain’t so!! :¬(
Yeah they do, animal cruelty being only too common i’m afraid.

I apologize as well. I usually try to avoid personal stuff, unless it’s an abuser. They can fry in hell.

It hits me like a hard slap in the face! These commercials are exactly why my wife and I volunteer at a local animal shelter once a month. We do everything we can to help these sad and victimized animals understand happiness and comfort in their short lives. It makes us feel on “Cloud 9” when these animals find a new and loving home. (Take that Sarah McLaughlin!)

What really rips my heart out is that people will dig deep to save the starving puppies but will not bat an eye when passing that guy with the will work for food sign on the street corner.

@jlee7766 Thanks for sharing that, I’m absolutely going to volunteer too! I truly never thought about it.

@YoBob hear hear

Welcome to Fluther! I just change it, I don’t think it’s necessary to invest myself emotionally every damn commercial break! Give it a rest Sara McLaughlin, you’re wasting the money I sent in with all these commercials!

Yup, I just don’t watch them. Unfortunately I can’t afford to donate money and I don’t have the time to volunteer, so I change the channel.

I can’t really blame the commercial for representing reality as it is. Sad things happen. Animals are abused. I can’t be angry at them for showing it and wanting people to do something about it. That said, stuff like that doesn’t really get me, I’m not sure why, but it just doesn’t. It doesn’t mean I don’t care, but it’s not going to make me cry and change the channel.

@YoBob This, I also agree with.

Oh god when i see those i actually believe I’m the most depressed person on earth.
I just think HOW? How can people be so inhumane?
Makes you wonder doesn’t it, are humans really the higher beings?

@sophiesword We are capable of either destroying or nurturing our world; animal abuse is but a small example of the former. Some people destroy because they themselves are incomplete.

@YoBob I think the reason why many of us feel more compassion for an abused animal rather than that homeless guy on the street is that the feeling is that homeless guy probably has the capability (assuming he/she is mentally stable) to help himself if he really wanted to. The animal on the other hand is totally dependent on people. I think another reason is that when we see an abused animal we think of our own pets and we can’t imagine why anyone could hurt such an innocent creature. On the other hand, it’s easy to imagine people being somewhat “deserving” of their situation since we come across so many horrible people in our lives. Of course you can feel compassion for both – I do – as it is not an either/or situation. Just because you care for animals does not mean you can’t care about people as well!

One other thing – I strongly believe in giving to charity whenever possible. However, do your research and make sure the money actually goes to where they say it’s going. Some charities are far better than others. Check out charitynavigator.org before you donate.

@rOs that’s true but lately i just feel we have been doing a lot of destroying and the seldom acts of kindness man does exhibit, it’s just too little too late.

@tko7800 – Firstly, I strongly believe in using one’s gifts (be it money, time, skills, or whatever) in a focused effort to do good in the world. However It has been my unfortunate experience that most charitable organization I donate money to will “reward” me with a subsequent steady stream of junk mail and telephone solicitations “thanking” me for my support and asking for additional funds. I cannot help but believe that for the most part these organizations spend the vast majority (if not more) of what I donate to fund those solicitation efforts, which in turn makes me a bit skeptical/cynical about the actual effectiveness of the cash donations I make to most of those organizations. Perhaps your charity navigator link can help with choosing a bit more wisely.

As for saving the puppies, I have two rescues, one of which was abandoned and the other who found me while wandering our neighborhood as a stray. Both now receive more love and care (sadly) than most kids.

As for people, I quite agree that there is a feeling of those homeless folks having a chance to help themselves. I generally don’t hand out money, but on those days when I don’t get around to eating my lunch, should I happen to stop at a corner on my way home with a deserving looking soul I am happy to give it to them. I really sincerely wish I had a real jobs to offer these folks (I’m talkin’ a job with a livable wage that would be available long term for those who are willing to show up and do it) . It would be an interesting study to see how many would take me up on the initial offer and how many would actually continue to return to work for more than a week.

@YoBob Yep, I fully agree on charities. The main reason why I brought it up is because I did work at a well-known “non-profit” that I felt was run more like a business than an actual charity. I won’t say who it is, but they are one of the lowest-ranked organizations on that website I gave.

I would love to see how many homeless people would take you up on that offer as well. I sometimes see them with signs that say “need job for food” or whatever, but I usually think that’s just a prop to get sympathy. Maybe I’m just too damn cynical though. I have to admit, I am a sucker for homeless people with pets and have bought food for them on a few occasions. I also worry that they too are using the animals as a prop of sorts, but I can’t punish the pet for that.

And kudos to you for saving those two puppies. Wish more people were like that.

Elton John sings for these commercials too now!

after doing songs for lion king !!!