Julie Longhill

ANIMAL RIGHTS AND ANIMAL WRONGS By Julie Longhill Lobsters in a tank Rubberbanded claws Nothing to do, nowhere to go I feel their suffering Do you? Bridles and crops Collars to choke Electric shocks to the throat and body These things have become normal and are used on our beloved pets My soul has witnessed these things Each time my heart is broken A silent scream is all I can muster Don't they see Don't they feel the torture and sins they commit? Zoos to entertain us Exotic animals for our children to see And what do they see exactly- and what do they learn? Confinement of magnificent creatures living out their lives in boredom Unnatural lives Look into their eyes and you will see the suffering the hopelessness the despair  And then there is the scientific research Animals are used and abused tagged and drugged in laboratories and in the wild I cannot even allow myself to imagine what goes on there Experiments and trials More suffering and pain The holocaust has not ended but the victims now have fur Circuses and rodeos Pet shops and dog shows Horse racing Horse wrangling Breaking a horse Breaking it's spirit Fixing a dog Neutering your cat De-clawing Docking tails Burning horns Branding skin Castrating Controlling Selling and Possessing Animals as property Animals as slaves Animals as trophies Factory farms and fur coats Slaughterhouses Slaughterhouses Slaughterhouses How did we get like this- so cruel so callous so cold We are intellectual monsters justifying these deeds and losing our souls in the process Caging birds who were born to fly Keeping fish and whales in aquariums the size of bathtubs Taking their freedom Taking their balls Taking away their sexuality and joy of life No one thinks it is wrong except a few If I wince, they laugh If I question, they defend What rights do animals have? My soul can answer this Animals have the right to live freely Animals have the right to procreate Animals have the right to be with their own kind Animals have the right to have access to Mother Earth Animals have the right to live in their native environment Animals have the right to protect themselves Animals have the right to not be enslaved, tortured or abused by humans These are God given rights Anyone who professes that reason dictates otherwise goes against our Creator and violates spiritual law Will we continue to disgrace ourselves by harming our fellow creatures? What words can I use to penetrate your souls and open your hearts to the truth Animals are precious They are our brothers and sisters Our teachers and healers They deserve our respect Our love and devotion We can transform this world of cruelty and suffering Let it begin with you and me Let us ask for God's help and forgiveness Lift us up from the darkness Let the woundedness fall away Shine light on our relationship with animals Help us be the stewards we were meant to be By Julie Longhill Mountain Rest, South Carolina jlonghill@yahoo.com