Things that anger me:

So there I was walking out of a restaurant in my hometown, Hialeah, and I see some old man throwing his booger filled napkins on the floor. To his right was a huge trash can. How difficult is it to walk three steps over and put it there. It might seem insignificant, but it still annoys me. These are the same people who I see driving down 49th Street throwing trash into the street from their cars, leaving huge piles of garbage bags in the Walmart parking lot and then speeding away. Is the term "reuse, recycle" not available in Hialeah? It really annoys me, because I'm not asking people to complete a triathalon. If people don't take care of their streets, their cities, much less will they take care of nature, of the world. Directly or indirectly, this is something that affects us all, people and animals and of course, our Mother Nature.

Common sense for the senseless...

It pisses me off when people are negligent with their animals. There is no reason to ever get to that point. I cry of frustration, because I don’t know how people cannot understand something so simple: if you cannot care for an animal do NOT get one! The animal isn’t forcing you to get him, he can’t even talk! And if you make the mistake of getting one and not being able to provide for him, be mature enough to remedy the error, by finding him a shelter. Do not leave him on his own to suffer and starve, or with an embedded collar, without medical treatment, or proper hygiene and shelter. It is so easy to make a call to one’s local animal shelter or places with information regarding shelters or providing aid like the ASPCA and the Humane Society.

If you are thinking of getting an animal there are a few things to keep in mind:
Make sure you can provide love, attention and time
Puppies, kittens and every other baby animal out there are adorable. Do not get them just because they are cute, because they will grow. Make sure that you will still want them, love them and care for them after they outgrow their cute baby stage.
While an animal is not a human being, it is a living being and so should be treated as one. This means that it should be treated as part of the family, so one is getting a new family member.
Just like one would when adding a new member to any family, expect to spend more money. The animal will need proper nutrition, a shelter, grooming and cleaning. It is also vital for the animal to obtain good medical care and see a veterinary for routine check ups, vaccines and medicines.
But most of all, keep in mind that it is negligent to not care for an animal properly. So if he/she will be mistreated do not get them. The animal is not asking you to, it is your choice.

Toughen Up!

I was watching an Animal Cops and have noticed a tendency for negligent owners to get extremely light “punishments” for mistreating their animals. Usually it will be a monetary fine and in the most extreme cases of abuse a few days of jail time (months at the most). How is this supposed to diminish animal cruelty?
As a young professional with a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice, I know that the purpose of punishment is to deter the offender from repeating the crime. When a punishment is equal in severity to the crime committed, there are less chances that the offender will repeat the crime. But when the punishment is overly lenient, the offender is more likely to repeat the crime. So I ask myself, if the purpose is to punish the negligent animal owners and prevent them from repeating abusive behavior against animals, why are their punishments generally so lenient?

Music to my ears...

I love Sarah Brightman's song Johnny Wanna Live, because it speaks for all animals. I thoroughly believe that we have to defend those who can't speak. So go check out the lyrics here.

My very own Hannah and Joey

My money will go to Hershey's...

Got a sweet tooth? Please check out this important information about deadly animal tests funded by chocolate-maker Mars - creator of M&M's and Snickers. Please click here to read the article and don't forget to spread the word...

Top 10 Ways to Prevent Animal Cruelty

I was on the ASPCA website (which happens to be one of my FAVORITE websites ever!) and came across the Top 10 Ways to Prevent Animal Cruelty. I thought it had to be posted on here. It's pretty simple information that, I think, everyone should know/be aware of.

I was more than happy to see #3, because it gives instructions on how to report animal cruelty from any part of the country.

Hear ye consumers!

As consumers, there are ways in which we can show compassion and ensure that we are purchasing cruelty-free items. Perhaps it involves paying more for items, but it’s worth it.
· If one is a meat eater, purchasing cruelty-free meat, guarantees that this meat comes from animals that are free range or grass fed and killed in a humane way. These animals are not forced fed or given steroids.


· When buying eggs, it is important to get eggs that come from cage less hens. These free-range hens are not confined to a small cage, without being able to stretch out their limbs, stand up straight or even turn around.

Photo courtesy of aact.org
· Purchasing food that’s USDA organic is an aid to Mother Nature, without harmful pesticides and naturally grown.
· It is important to purchase shampoos, cleaners, cosmetics, hairsprays, and personal care items that are not animal tested.
Not only is it important to purchase these cruelty-free items, but also spread the word about them. We must hold the ones who state that these products are cruelty-free accountable and make sure that they truly are cruelty-free, by uniting and pressuring our politicians to pass laws such as California’s Proposition 2.

I don't mean to be preachy, but:

The Earth must be preserved because God made it perfect and wonderful for us to enjoy and live in it; “Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good…” -Genesis 1:31
Nature and animals are breathtaking and miraculous. Through nature we can see that the hand of God is present in it still. Every day the sun rises to provide us with light. Rain still continues falling from the sky to nourish our earth.
While I was, literally, walking among the clouds in El Yunque's Mt. Britton, I realized that nature is the most magnificent work of art ever created. But it must be cherished, respected and used properly. We must use the Earth humanely and compassionately by not disrupting its cycles, altering its habitats, polluting it or destroying it. The Earth is not a vast universe. If we don’t treat it right and continue being wasteful, we will run out of our natural resources sooner than expected.

Psalm 104
Praise to the Sovereign Lord for His Creation

Hey, Matador! How fun is this?

I can’t jump through a ring of fire or do a head stand. I can’t even balance myself on a ball. But the animals in the circus are required to do that and more.
The last time I went to the circus, I was six and have never returned. Even at that young age I knew it was wrong. Animals are not for our entertainment; they’re created to live in their natural habitats. Lions belong in an African savannah, not in an elevator sized cage for a circus.

Photo courtesy of circuses.com
And what’s fun about watching a man jabbing wooden sticks into a beautiful, defenseless bull? Then letting the animal die of asphyxiation (with punctured lungs) or by bleeding to death. That’s not culture. It is sadism reminiscent of medieval time tortures, not 21st century “sport.”

Photo courtesy of the Humane Society website
The Miccosukee Indian Village isn’t doing much to help alligators. On their supposed alligator fighting, the alligators are sluggish and slow. It’s more of a poke the alligator with a stick, wake him up, bother him, pull his jaw open for all to see and do all that’s possible to disturb the animal. And that’s in front of the public. I don’t know what happens behind closed doors. What I do know is that I’m never returning.

Shark attack-human style...

While it is now against the law, some fishermen on La Reunion Island (France) were caught using live dogs and cats as bait for sharks. For full article, visit HERE. I can’t even begin to say how many things are wrong with that scenario. As a dog owner- I have a Chihuahua/Lancashire Heeler mix and a Labrador Retriever- I could not bear to watch someone pass a metal fishing hook through a dog’s snout, and then have them thrown in the ocean as bait to acquire hungry sharks.

Photos courtesy of National Geographic

I will point out that it is not a widespread practice, but the fact that it would even occur once, makes it clear to me that we, as a people, have to stand against this and similar atrocities. I know that I don’t have the money to fly into the Indian Ocean whenever I chose to. But for now, I do the only thing that I can think of to try and stop this from occurring: Spread the word and inform, hoping that others will too.

Life's little contradictions...

I’m not a radical, nor a vegan/vegetarian. I love grilled chicken. What I do advocate is humanity for animals. In order to put food on the table, there’s no need to be cruel. Perhaps, humans should take animals as an example; they only kill when they feel threatened or to eat. This leads me to think that sometimes animals can be more humane than humans. People sometimes use their animals to satisfy their sadistic tendencies. Since when is beheading a dog with a knife political protest? Or starving a dying dog, art? (Someone should confine Guillermo Vargas to an elevator without food and water for weeks to awaken his artistic side!)
As grotesque as viewing or knowing about these acts might be, if everyone tries to ignore them, due to their sensibilities, who will stand up for our innocent, wordless companions? Contrary to popular belief, one doesn’t have to be strictly vegetarian to advocate compassion towards animals. It is not a contradiction. It should be every human’s responsibility. As the great Mahatma Gandhi once said:
“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated…I hold that, the more helpless a creature, the more entitled it is to protection by [people] from the cruelty of [human kind].”