British zoologist jailed for grotesque and shocking abuse of dogs

NEWS AND OPINION: Sadly, this new story is all over the Internet probably because it is so "grotesque". It is one of the most sickening examples of animal abuse by an individual ever recorded in my view. The British zoologist who committed these crimes is Adam Britton, 53, a crocodile expert. He pleaded guilty to 63 charges in an Australian court including bestiality, animal cruelty and possessing child abuse material. He was jailed for 10 years and 5 months in Australia yesterday. He admitted to killing dozens of dogs.

Image: MikeB based on an image deemed to be in the public domain.

He was a globally renowned crocodile expert. His reputation now, of course, is completely trashed. He had worked on BBC and National Geographic productions prior to being arrested in 2022. I can remember when that story first emerged.

The judge who sentenced Mr Britton to 10 years in jail described his behaviour as "unspeakable" and "grotesque".

Michael Grant, the Northern Territory Supreme Court Chief Justice warned that some details of the crimes that he had committed were too graphic to be published and he recommended that members of the public leave the court room.

Britain acquired 42 dogs online between 2020 and 2022. He promised their owners she would give them a good home as per an ABC report (Australia's national broadcaster).

Rather than giving them a good home as he promised, he filmed himself raping, torturing and killing them in a shipping container on this property in Darwin according to the ABC report. He shared the video footage on Telegram under a pseudonym.

People who attended the trial in the public gallery were seen crying and gasping as the offences were read out.

The judge said during sentencing: "You're sheer and unalloyed pleasure is sickeningly evident from the recorded material." Britton showed no emotion during sentencing.

Britain grew up in West Yorkshire. He obtained a PhD at the University of Bristol and then moved to Australia. He settled in the Northern Territory. He became a respected academic at Charles Darwin University.

He was considered to be an expert on saltwater crocodiles. He appeared on TV with celebrities including David Attenborough.

Outside the court, animal rights advocates gathered and labelled him a "zoo-sadist". They say that he deserves the death penalty. The death penalty has been outlawed in Australia since 1985.

He can apply for parole in April 2028. He is banned from owning mammals for the rest of his life.

Although the newspapers don't discuss this and I can only touch on it, he must have learnt this grotesque form of animal abuse somewhere from someone. I don't think humans inherit this kind of behaviour. And therefore, I would respectfully suggest that he learnt it from his parents perhaps his father. I think that point needs to be investigated actually. And we don't know whether he has children. If he has children has he passed on his miscreant behaviour to his kids? There is always a cycle of violence within a family. One generation passing it on to the next. It applies very starkly in the area of sport and trophy hunting. We see parents teaching their kids to hunt for pleasure. All animal advocates detest trophy hunting because it's so cruel and it is for the pleasure of the hunter.

---------

P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins. Also: sources for news articles are carefully selected but the news is often not independently verified. Also, I rely on scientific studies but they are not 100% reliable.

Owners trick dogs with lemon slices in new animal exploitation trend on TikTok

A veterinarian, Dr. Anna Foreman, is yet another who has expressed concern about videos on TikTok in which animals are abused and exploited. TikTok has acquired a bit of a reputation for animal abuse videos; videos to attract viewers at any cost and the animal is there as a convenient subject to be used for this goal.

Owners trick dogs with lemon slices in new animal exploitation trend on TikTok. Screenshot.

On TikTok there is a hashtag  "#DogVSLemon" which has amassed 20.1 million views on the social media platform. That said, we should recognise the fact that TikTok statistics are heavily distorted by the way videos are looped to replay immediately after you've stop viewing it. I would estimate that all TikTok videos have received accurate views which are somewhere near a quarter of that which is stated adjacent to the video.

In one video which has apparently been viewed 16 million times, we see an uncomfortable puppy after its owner throws a lemon into its mouth. There has been a 65% increase in online searches for "dogs eating lemons".

It would seem that the amusing aspect of these videos is to see a dog's discomfort when they chomp down on a bitter lemon. Dr. Anna said that: “Many dogs will eat anything thrown at them (or grab any food on the floor etc.) without a second thought, often not even sniffing or tasting it first. “This can be good in a few scenarios, for example with giving a dog a tablet, however, it can be quite dangerous in many others.”

She added that “Sour citrus fruits such as lemon and lime tend not to be palatable to dogs, however if eaten in anything more than minimal quantities can cause gastrointestinal upsets or more severe clinical signs like collapse.

“Throwing food at a dog for them to catch is a choking hazard, particularly if the piece of food is too large to swallow whole.”

Owners who do this might at least slightly erode the relationship between themselves and their dog. They might undermine the trust that the dog has in them.

And it is also worth saying that this trick cannot be repeated with the same dog over and over again because they will learn that if they participate they'll be uncomfortable. It is a good example of negative reinforcement or punishment to alter behaviour. It is a clear-cut case of owners exploiting their companion dogs.

We have seen on numerous occasions owners exploiting companion cats in the same way. They are called "funny cat videos" but they aren't so funny for the cat because a study found that more than a third of cats in these videos are stressed.

RELATED: 34% of cats featured in ‘funny cat videos’ are upset and stressed.

Finally, a cat or dog might become stressed when performing the lemon throwing trick for a social media video. This may lead to aggression and that aggression might, on rare occasions, be directed at their owner or somebody else in the vicinity.

It is unwise behaviour and TikTok should stop it. They do promise to moderate videos but as usual for successful platforms like TikTok, the administrators have an impossible task. 

There are too many uploaded videos and they are therefore reliant upon other users to notify them of animal abuse or other policy breaches. This doesn't happen enough and never will. It is a failure within social media.

---------

P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins.

Should Alaska’s annual Iditarod sled dog race be banned?

Image by DALL-E 3

The question of whether Alaska’s annual Iditarod sled dog race should be banned is a complex and contentious one. Let’s explore both sides of the argument:

Arguments in Favor of Banning the Iditarod:

1. Animal Welfare Concerns: Critics argue that the race places an immense physical strain on the sled dogs. The harsh conditions, long distances, and extreme cold can lead to injuries, exhaustion, and even death. Advocates for banning the race emphasize the need to prioritize the well-being of these animals.

2. Ethical Considerations: Some people view the Iditarod as an outdated tradition that no longer aligns with modern sensibilities. They believe that using dogs for such gruelling races is ethically questionable and that it perpetuates a harmful mindset about animals as mere tools.

3. Changing Attitudes: As societal attitudes toward animal rights evolve, there is growing pressure to re-evaluate practices like the Iditarod. Bans on other animal-related events (such as circuses with animal acts) have set a precedent for reconsidering the treatment of animals in various contexts.

Arguments Against Banning the Iditarod:

1. Historical and Cultural Significance: Proponents of the Iditarod emphasize its historical roots and cultural importance. The race commemorates the vital role sled dogs played in Alaska’s history, transporting supplies and people across vast wilderness areas.

2. Musher Dedication: Many mushers (the sled dog drivers) have deep connections with their dogs and treat them well. They argue that the race provides an opportunity to showcase the bond between humans and animals, as well as the resilience of both.

3. Regulation and Improvements: Supporters contend that the Iditarod has made significant improvements over the years. Stricter regulations, better veterinary care, and improved race conditions have been implemented to safeguard the dogs’ welfare.

In conclusion, the decision to ban or continue the Iditarod involves weighing tradition, cultural significance, animal welfare, and evolving societal values. It’s a nuanced debate, and finding a balanced solution that respects both history and ethics is essential. Ultimately, it’s up to policymakers, communities, and stakeholders to determine the race’s future. 🐾🏁

This article was written by Bing's Co-pilot and illustrated by its assistant DALLE. They are both AI computers and they are amazing. If you can't beat them join them is the motto nowadays. I didn't even read the article! Just copied and pasted it for good or bad.

----------

P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins. NOTE: THERE ARE  NO TYPOS IN THIS!!

Puppy needs IMMEDIATE rescue from abusive owner as seen on video (India)

We have the general address. Somebody needs to try and find out where this man lives and ideally arrest him for animal abuse under India's animal welfare laws which is unlikely but at least remove the puppy from him and take the him/her to an animal shelter for rehoming.  The tweet reporting this is dated May 16th. Something may have happened already but it unlikely.

The video (below) appears to have a reference to the location of the apartment in a URL (web address) and it tells us the name of the development. 

This is the address: 

Address: Survey No 25, Kondhwa-Undri-Saswad Rd, Near Undri Chowk, Katraj Saswad Bypass, Mohammed Wadi, Pune, Maharashtra 411060, India

India has decent animal welfare laws as the British introduced them when they ran the country although they need updating.

The man lives in Pune, India. He lives in a large block of flats. Somebody in an adjacent block of flats had the foresight to record his abuse on their smart phone and so we have a decent video in terms of definition (although it could be a bit better), which may help to identify him.

It is a distressing video if you are in any way concerned about animal welfare. Why he has a companion animal is beyond me. He is clearly unfit to own any animal. He is ignorant and insensitive.

The video comes from Twitter and the person who posted the tweet asks for immediate action for the dog to be removed and rescued.

All I am doing is spreading the word. I do not expect any success but unless we try, we never know. Please spread the word.

WARNING: Spanish dump, abandon and kill (hang) 60,000 - 80,000 hunting dogs - EVERY single year. WTF.

What is wrong with the Spanish? Why are there too many ignorant, insensitive hunters in that developed and supposedly civilised European country? They hunt with dogs and when the hunting season is over, they kill the dogs! What about that for civilised behavior? More like Medieval behavior. The behavior of a backward race of humans who can't - just can't - believe that animals are sentient creatures. 

You could not hang a 2-year-old dog that has worked for you to death which will be slow and agonising unless you are a brutal shit of a person.

The Spanish almost extirpated the Iberian lynx by shooting all the rabbits which sustained this rare wild cat. It took legislation to prevent the blood thirsty Spanish from shooting them. The Iberian lynx population has increased thankfully. But it would not have happened unless they were forced to stop shooting rabbits for fun with a complete disregard for the pain they caused.

Yes, the word IGNORANT comes to mind. The tweet below is doubly shocking really as it tells me that the Spanish government accept this mass animal cruelty of domestic dogs - supposedly man's best friend. Well, for the hunting dogs in Spain, humans are not their best friend. They are an enemy to avoid.

Why do they accept this? They must accept it as it happens every year. Why does the European Union (EU) accept this? Why isn't the EU Commission doing something about this? They need to apply a bit of pressure in the Spanish government to change their ignorant ways.

The tweet says:

At the end of each hunting season in February, it is estimated that between 60,000 and 80,000 Spanish hunting dogs (Podencos as well as Galgos, the Spanish Greyhound) are dumped, abandoned or killed, considered too old or too slow for the next season. 60,000 - 80,000 dogs - EVERY single year!! By tradition, the dogs are hanged by the neck their feet barely touching the ground, takes many days to die.

And here is the photo that I have warned you about.

WARNING: Spanish dump, abandon and kill (hang) 60,000 - 80,000 hunting dogs - EVERY single year. WTF. Image: Twitter.

Strong-willed brave woman confronts ignorant man abusing his dog

I love this video. I love this strong-willed and brave woman who is confronting an ignorant man who is abusing his dog. The man can't speak half-decent English unfortunately. There is a communication problem here. And there is also an attitude problem with the man. 

Sad to say, in his culture, it is all right to tie a dog's forelegs together and leave the dog on the forecourt without water. This is what the woman is remonstrating with the man about. She, rightly, sees it is very cruel and cannot comprehend what he is doing. 

It goes against all social norms of decency in humankind's relationship with companion animals. He doesn't get that.

It is actually far worse than what you see because it is believed the man is killing dogs for dog meat. And this is the United States. It does happen in the States.

RELATED: Hawaii is Pushing for a Ban on the Consumption of Cat and Dog Meat.

This is the caption to the video:

This Asian man is rumoured to be slaughtering dogs to eat in USA??! Dog on his drive with front paws tied together & tethered! No water! Can u help @FresnoHumane ?  Address: 3080 East Thomas Ave. Fresno, 93701,CA !  📞 REPORT HIM  to Fresno PD (599) 621-1000 / (599)6212200

I think he says that he bought the dog that day and he's going to sell the dog soon. I don't know. I think she may work for a shelter and as you can hear in the video, she offers to take the dog there and then i.e. to rescue him or her. He refuses.

As the woman says in the video, it is illegal where she lives to tether a dog like that and to tie them up. That would be illegal in many countries because it is inherently cruel. In some states in the US there are rules about tethering making it illegal. But this is more than that. It is simply tying up a dog so that they cannot move.

And apparently it was a warm or hot day. The dog is panting as you can see and therefore requires water to help cool down. The water is about 12 paces away. The dog can't get to the water. It's ridiculous the woman says. It truly is ridiculous. Ridiculously cruel and abusive.

Like I said at the beginning this is an attitude problem. That attitude, I am reluctant to say, comes from Asia where dogs are more utilitarian. They are often not treated as members of the family or even as sentient. 

RELATED (read this as he explains the attitude problems): Brilliant, compassionate Ai Weiwei loves cats and finds them more interesting than humans.
By utilitarian I mean dogs must either be useful as working dogs or if they cannot serve that function should be killed and eaten. In which case they provide food for the human which means that they are useful and utilitarian at that end point in their lives.

Here are a series of screenshots from the video. These are here for SCO purposes so that Google can find the page better. When they are here to encase the video stops working. That's unlikely in this instance but it can happen.

Stalker abducted former lover's cockapoo in campaign of hate

NEWS AND OPINION: A classic story of an embittered man who harassed a pretty woman and abducted her attractive dog.

Hannah Rasekh with her cockapoo and the man, Bashar Ayoub, who harassed and threatened her. Hands up, this is a Sun montage. If The Sun objects, please tell me in a comment.

The basic story is pretty commonplace and rather typical but with a twist as a dog was involved. Sorry no cat stories today 😢😎.

Hannah Rasekh was born in the UK and has a Palestinian heritage. She is an influencer on social media and has a boutique in Al Amman, Jordan. 

She met Bashar Ayoub in Dubai in 2017. Bashar Ayoub is a property developer with some wealth, and he lives in a £2 million flat in a posh part of London (Belgravia). Hannah Rasekh lives in South Kensington, West London.

She decided to split up from Bashar Ayoub claiming that he had "emotionally and psychologically" abused her. Bashar Ayoub was obviously enraged, and he embarked on a campaign of harassment and nasty threats. 

I set out some of those threats below but before I do so I will bring into the story Rasekh's cockapoo, Ted, who was abducted by Ayoub. 

He turned up at her home while she was not there, but her parents were as they were housesitting and said that he was a friend who had offered to walk her dog. He took the dog and did not return him. He therefore abducted Ted. We are told that he returned the dog several weeks later.

He couldn't stop himself harassing her because even after Hannah Rasekh had contacted the police and the police were actually inside her home, Ayoub called her 85 times. The police warned Ayoub not to contact her but within hours he started his campaign again and phoned Rasekh 64 times together with sending her abusive messages.

In one he said: "Die you thief you thieving whore, I pray you die, I pray you die every day, you whore."

He also said in another text: "I'll rip you apart, all of you, your whole family you c****. He sent 35 emails to her between January 4 and January 5 in 2022 in which he called her a "bitch".

His behaviour inevitably led him to the criminal courts where he admitted one charge of stalking with fear of harm and violence between April 4 and September 5.

He was granted conditional bail. The condition is that he does not contact Hannah Rasekh directly or indirectly. 

He must wear a GPS tag to ensure that he does not go near her home. He will be sentenced at Westminster magistrates' Court on December 8. The max he can get is 10 years in jail.

My thanks to The Times newspaper.

Camilla Long doesn't know the difference between Pen Farthing and Joe Exotic

Camilla Long is a well-known journalist writing for The Sunday Times. She comments on the news and I guess anything that interests her. Today, she has written something which irritates me. I'm sure she doesn't give a damn. In fact it probably pleases her because her provocative articles are meant to irritate and delight at the same time. She is a consummate writer, very bright, Oxbridge educated and blah blah blah. She is talented. But she's got this completely wrong.

Camilla Long. Photo: Twitter.

She is criticising animal lovers and "animal people" who, I presume, are the same species of human. And she can't tell the difference between the behaviour of the well-known animal rescuer, Pen Farthing, who was until the mass evacuation based in Kabul, Afghanistan and the obnoxious but made-for-television personality, Joe Exotic.

I'll tell her what the difference is. Mr Farthing saves the lives of unwanted and discarded animals. He shipped many dogs from Afghanistan to America. This is because American military personnel rescued dogs in Afghanistan and became close to them. When they came to the end of their deployment and returned to America they had to leave their dogs behind. Mr Farthing rectified that problem. He raised considerable funds to ship these dogs to America for a reunion and to allow the dogs to live out their lives happily. He saved lives and did good work. He also ran a vet surgery in Kabul. He founded and ran the best animal rescue organisation in Afghanistan for years. He alleviated pain and distress in animals.

RELATED: Taliban likely to ban dogs but accept cats

He bent over backwards and struggled enormously to save the lives of about 200 cats and dogs during the mass evacuation when the Taliban took over. Camilla Long criticises him for euthanising 32 older dogs at that time because they weren't enough crates to transport them all, she said. She also criticises him for the death of six cats who were tear-gassed after a suicide bomb went off at the airport.

I'm sure Mr Farthing reluctantly euthanised the dogs that she mentions. Sometimes rescue animals have to be euthanised despite best intentions. Under the most dire and critical conditions, Mr Farthing saved lives. If he euthanised these dogs it would have been an absolutely last resort that he was compelled to take. It would have been a humane decision.

RELATED: 25-30 cats at US Embassy Kabul have been abandoned

By contrast, Joe Exotic, for many years, ran the biggest private zoo in America and exploited big cat cubs for financial gain on a treadmill basis. They were used for photo shoots but when they grew up they were redundant. They were surplus to requirements. There were sometimes shot. Basically he was exploiting animals in the most abusive way for many many years. And he is serving a 22-year sentence for plotting to murder Carole Baskin, one of the world's 'animal people'. He is a thoroughly obnoxious individual.

These two individuals are in stark contrast to each other. You cannot say what Camilla Long has written about them which is as follows:

What's the difference between Farthing and the execrable human beings who run roadside tiger parks in America?

Well, I agree about the execrable human beings who exploit big cats and abuse them in the process but as mentioned there is a big difference. There's a big difference between exploitation and saving lives. In fact, they are at the opposite end of the spectrum of our relationship with humans.

Report fake animal rescue videos to YouTube administrators

You may have heard about fake YouTube animal rescue videos. To the best of my knowledge these videos emanate from Asia. What happens is this. Because people want to make a lot of money through advertising on YouTube, they target the sort of video that is attractive. Animal rescue videos are attractive. It is impossible, almost, to make a genuine animal rescue video because these events are so rare and you've got to be in the right place at the right time.

Because of these factors, unscrupulous people are creating fake animal rescue videos. So, what they do is they take an unwanted stray kitten, of which there are many in Third World countries, and they place that kitten in a precarious, life-threatening situation such as very near a snake pit or the kitten or cat is dumped into a deep pool of mud. Or they might put a jar or can over the cat's head which temporarily blinds them.

Fake animal rescues of YouTube. This one has been on their website for 2 years. Screenshot.

The next step then is to approach the animal with a smartphone in one hand recording the rescue, while the other hand is used to rescue the animal by taking off the can over their head or extricating them from a pool of mud and so on.  You can tell the video is fake partly because only one hand is used when two would be far more effective. They publish the video as genuine and many of them get a good number of hits which enhances their prospects of earning a decent amount of money from Google AdSense advertising.

One major thing wrong with this exercise is that the animals are the victims. They are the unwitting players in these mini-films. They gave no consent to be abused like this. It is a straight case of cat or dog abuse. And of course, they are deceiving the public. They are immoral and they should be deleted from YouTube. When you complain to YouTube administrators they might be deleted.

It has to be said that the YouTube administrators are very reluctant to delete anything on their platform. They believe in free speech which is great but arguably they give too much leeway and so free speech becomes hate speech and animal rescue becomes animal cruelty. It appears to me that YouTube is managed by left-wing liberals. That is not a bad thing per se. It's just that they are snowflake types. They are woke and there is little robustness about their decision-making. That's my personal view.

CLICK THIS FOR MANY PAGES ON CAT VIDEOS WHICH I USUALLY CRITIQUE

You will find that reporting a video to them which is unacceptable may be fruitless. They may delete the video a long time after receiving the report. They may not delete it. And the whole process of reporting is very opaque. There is no feedback, there is no response from them. You click your report through and it goes into a black hole. No light emanates from that hole. It is hit and hope. YouTube are not good at communicating. They do their best to not communicate.

The reason for that is because they simply don't have the manpower to deal with the plethora or flood of problems and reports. They can't manage the videos themselves so they rely on users to report problematic videos. That in itself as a model is a poor one. It is abdicating one's responsibility to ensure that all the videos on their platform are decent and will not corrupt minds or promote animal abuse or human abuse. I'm moaning about YouTube and they may punish me for it. They can be vindictive as well.

Notwithstanding all these issues, if you do bump into a video which you think is a fake animal rescue then please report it to the administrators as it might help to save lives and prevent animal cruelty.

Decriminalising possession of all drugs, prostitution and minor crime to improve animal welfare

Baltimore in the USA had done something radical. Baltimore's top prosecutor has decriminalised the possession of all drugs, along with prostitution and other minor street crimes. The objective: to improve public safety in what was one of America's most dangerous cities. I say "was" because it has worked. In this city the drug war is over said Marilyn Mosby. They have, in the words of the mayor, "reimagined public safety". In other words they have taken a completely different position on how to improve public safety. And I'm going to argue in this post that if you improve the safety of the public you also improve the safety of companion animals who live with the public.

Baltimore, USA. Image by emitea from Pixabay 

And the safety of companion animals, particularly domestic cats, is my overriding concern. Baltimore won't even prosecute criminals who possess heroin. They don't prosecute for non-violent crimes of attempted drug distribution, possession of drug paraphernalia, trespassing and minor traffic offences and, as mentioned, prostitution. These infractions are now dealt with as community health problems and the perpetrators are redirected to social services or other sections of Baltimore's public health system.

Over the past year, during the coronavirus pandemic, many American cities have experienced a spike in violence whereas violent crime in Baltimore has fallen by 20%. Property crime has dropped by 36%. The number of prisoners has fallen by 18% and there has been a fall in the number of people entering the criminal justice system by 39%.

In Baltimore they measure public concern by the number of emergency calls about drug use and sex work. Between March and December 2020 these calls dropped by one third with respect to drug use and by one half with respect to sex work.

They are going to focus on violent offences like armed robbery and carjacking together with drug distribution organisations. These are the underbelly of violence in Baltimore.

I think this story need to be digested by anybody who is considering how to improve public safety and reduce levels of crime in their city or municipality. It's a good test case. It has probably released some of the tension in Baltimore. If law enforcement is constantly cracking down on petty crime there is a constant level of tension between the authorities and the citizens. 

I don't know for sure because I am not an expert but to try and help drug takers through social services and health systems is far more ameliorative and palliative and therefore more gentle than cracking down on these people who certainly need help.

Perhaps that attitude from the authorities has feed through to society, making these perpetrators less aggressive and with less aggression you are less likely to have incidents of violence against animals. Often animals are the victims of spontaneous acts of aggression from citizens either on drugs or alcohol. Alcoholism is  an outlet for aggression and anger. If you reduce the level of anger in society you should reduce the level of animal abuse and cruelty. I'm thinking aloud so I don't know for sure but it makes sense to me.

Coronavirus pandemic should stop unregulated cat and dog meat businesses

Just a quick note on the grisly and sad topic of cat and dog meat. It is still big business in Vietnam and Southern China and elsewhere in Asia. At one stage Vietnam had a rat infestation problem and believed that the cat meat industry was allowing rat numbers to increase so they introduced a government directive to end 'cat-meat eateries' (Directive No.09/1998/CT-TTg). That law was revoked a year ago. It failed clearly.

The sad and disgusting cat meat trade can expose people to zoonotic diseases.
Pic in public domain in my view.

So there appears to be rumblings in parts of Asia on the subject of how to change people's habits in eating people's pets. It is deeply engrained. How it got to that stage is beyond my comprehension. It is obviously immoral. 

But a reason to stop eating people's pets goes well beyond morality. It is all about human health and wellbeing. The coronavirus pandemic tells us that when humans slaughter animals in an unregulated way in open markets they expose themselves to being infected by zoonotic diseases present in those animals.

Cats are the number one vector for toxoplasmosis for instance. I am sure a lot of Chinese and Vietnamese have caught toxoplasmosis from the domestic cats that they have eaten. They might not know it. They might feel a bit ill persistently. They have no idea that their low level illness is due to their careless approach to animal welfare and their unthinking habit of eating cats, sometimes pet animals.

It is not beyond the bounds of possibility that another zoonotic coronavirus-type disease could be transmitted from domestic cats slaughtered for human consumption in a seedy market in the south of China. Surely the coronavirus pandemic must be a lesson to these people to be far more careful to avoid zoonotic diseases?

The Chinese conurbation of Shenzhen banned cat and dog meat because of the coronavirus pandemic. Clearly the authorities are concerned. Their eyes are open to the inherent dangers of unregulated slaughter and consumption cat and dog meat. Others need to follows asap.

A study found an association between Toxoplasma gondii infection and psychiatric disorders in Zhejiang, Southeastern China. This is not far from the epidentre of the cat and dog meat industry in China as I understand it. Is there a link between the conclusion of this study and eating cat meat?

Nature has a way of 'punishing' animal abusers. The pandemic is the paradigm example. Abuse nature and nature will strike back. If they can't stop eating cat and dog meat for reasons of morality then do it in the interests of human health.

Nature has taught humankind a lesson. Some Asians refuse to learn the lesson and digest it.

Crack Cocaine, Alleged Threats to Kill, Alleged Animal Abuse

They seem to go together quite nicely.  He talked about hurting his girlfriend to his girlfriend.  He talked about hurting animals.  He talked to people who weren't there.  He heard voices which told him to kill humans, kill his girlfriend, you name it.

Nicolino Ivano Camardi - Photograph by: Calgary Herald , Calgary Herald
Baby faced alleged cat killer.

You know that violence against animals often leads to violence against people in a kind of natural progression.  In this case you can bundle it all together simultaneously and it would seem, at a cursory glance, that the catalyst for this chaotic and violent behaviour is drugs.

At this moment in time these are allegations, please note.  I don't want to defame this person. However, it would seem very easy to casually fall into this destructive and nihilistic way of life.

This person is charged with killing a cat and a dog.  He taped their mouths shut.  The dog starved to death while the cat had been strangled with a cord or rope and had other injuries.

Quite naturally, the judge has ordered that this person undergo a psychiatric evaluation.  I should not prejudge the outcome of that evaluation but it would seem likely that he suffers from a mental illness brought about, or brought on, by drugs.