Animals

I was driving along Georgia Avenue in Washington, D.C., when three dogs started across the street. One was hit by a car, apparently fatally. The other two looked back briefly, then trotted on their way. I don't know what I expected them to do. Guard the body of their fallen comrade? Howl in grief? Attack the car that did the damage? Of course not. Still it seemed sad to me that they could go on about their doggie business as though nothing significant had happened. I thought about that unfortunate creature the other day when I heard Washington's Assistant Police Chief Isaac Fulwood talking about the scene of a recent drug-related shootout at a nightclub.

The manager turned the key, the apartment door swung open, and as a gagging stench rushed out to embrace Gary Lovett, one thing became abundantly clear. Those three little beagles had been getting their meals. "Oh, God," muttered Lovett, an investigator for the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, as he peered inside the apartment in Somerton. Before him lay a one-bedroom unit virtually carpeted in wall-to-wall dog dung. It was all over the living room, in the kitchen, in the bathroom, around the bed. As for the beagles, they weren't home.

One could say they're the city's luckiest residents. No city wage tax. No rent. Free food. No hassles with police - they police their own. Sure, they sometimes eat their young, or each other, but that's the way life is . . . . . . For rats. The surviving city rats. The new homeless, displaced by the Vine Street Expressway, the subway work, the pit that is to become the Convention Center and the blocks cleared for the Criminal Justice Center. Big, fat, hungry, horny rats.

In the exhibit "Animals in the Gallery," which features 83 paintings, drawings and sculptures, visitors to the Brandywine River Museum seem to want to pony up for more than just a glance at animal images. These Brandywine visitors, in a sense, become whatever wild creature or humble barnyard animal is portrayed. They are momentarily caught up in that animal's daily routine, empathizing with a herd of wild horses one moment or a bison herd destined to wander the next. They are the beast of burden, the cherished domestic pets at play.

When temperatures reached a sweltering 95 degrees Friday, humans weren't the only ones who needed to cool off. Animals at the Philadelphia Zoo were hot, too, and found some relief from large blocks of ice, which were delivered to them by zoo workers. The animals found various ways to enjoy the cool gifts, but many just opted to chew on them.

Moving to a new home may be as traumatic for pets as it is for humans. The animals will need special affection and reassurance during and after the move, and it is important to maintain their normal feeding, exercise and grooming schedules in their new surroundings. Those who move can expect disputes among animals that formerly lived in peace, as well as rug-soiling, chewing, all-night barking and other misbehavior. Animals always should be crated when they are carried in a car. In the new house, the crate can be a pet's temporary living quarters.

Many of the 150 to 200 animals found starving at a Montgomery County farm this week had not been fed for as long as three months, not the three weeks asserted by their owner, an SPCA official said yesterday. Wendy Ware, an investigator for the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Conshohocken, said many caged rodents, and even some rabbits, which normally are vegetarians, ate their dead companions to stay alive. She said a snake, which normally would eat no more than about every 10 days, was found dead and rotting in a filthy enclosure in a barn, one of several buildings on the property that housed rows upon rows of caged and penned animals.

Some patients treated for shoulder or pelvic injuries by chiropractor Peter Leighton show their appreciation in a most unusual way. They give him a grateful lick on the nose. "That's probably the only way a dog or cat can say thank you," said Leighton, 45, a Rosemont resident whose chiropractic patients include animals. "They are nervous when they come in, but they are happy to walk out normal again. " Most of Leighton's patients are people, but occasionally he will manipulate the vertebrae of animals at his City Line Chiropractic Center in the Presidential Apartments in Philadelphia.

Engaging, inquisitive, articulate and energetic, Edwin, 15, is passionate about nature and animals. He especially loves birds and dogs and would like to work with animals in the future. An organization for service dogs that Edwin worked with praised his gentleness and talent with animals. A competitive chess player, Edwin also enjoys spending his leisure time putting puzzles together, playing video games, drawing, and creating stories. Although he likes being the center of attention, he is at his best when he is helping others and feels part of a team.

The sad truth is that, generally speaking, only pet factories where enslaved animals are bred to death can make a profit. For breeders seeking to turn out quality animals, the costs are too high. Most of them do it as an avocation because they are interested in propagating and improving a particular breed rather than making a living at it. A few of the expenditures that the prospective breeder must take into account are whelping crates and boxes; special veterinary care for mother and offspring; food and supplements for the newborns; testing and treating for parasites; several sets of immunization shots; advertising; telephone bills, and registration with the authorities.