Who Cares for the Fleas? by Dave Miller, Ph.D.

http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=7&article=1612

Who Cares for the Fleas?

by	Dave Miller, Ph.D.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), the Humane Society, and other animal rights groups have devoted themselves for years to preventing cruelty to animals. Such groups now seek to convince the rest of the world that animals should be “celebrated” and treated like “family” (e.g., “About Us…,” 2011). Such humanistic, evolution-based thinking has resulted in the frequent arrest and prosecution of those who are deemed guilty of mistreating animals. For example, a woman in Missouri was “charged with six counts of felony animal abuse after authorities seized six dogs from a flea-infested property in Iron Mountain Lake” (“Six Dogs…,” 2008, emp. added). As city workers and volunteers worked to clean up the neglected property where the dogs were kept, the local police chief explained: “We have a lot of debris to remove…. We are also going to burn off the ground to get rid of the flea infestation that exists” (“Case Updates,” 2009, emp. added). In a case in Connecticut, a woman was charged with animal cruelty when an animal control officer documented the condition of two dogs, noting that the abuse included “a terrible flea infestation” (“Dogs Neglected…,” 2009, emp. added). In California, a man was arrested on animal cruelty charges for tossing from his vehicle an unwanted Chihuahua, described as“flea-ridden” and “emaciated” (“Flea-infested…,” 2011). In New York, authorities “rescued” 23 dogs that were found to be “underfed, anemic, and flea-infested,” having “never seen a veterinarian to receive vaccinations or checkups” (Berke, 2012, emp. added). A host of such instances could be cited in which people are charged with animal cruelty for allowing animals to become, among other things, “flea-infested” (e.g., Braden, 1992; Eims, 2012; Michigan Animal Abuse…, 2011).

Inherent in all of these accounts is the fact that fleas are viewed as undesirable creatures to be eradicated. Their presence on other animals allegedly constitutes abuse by humans. So how should we deal with the nasty flea problem that causes the animal police to punish animal owners? The ASPCA offers the following advice for handling fleas on dogs and cats: “Speak with your veterinarian about choosing the right flea treatment product. Common options include a topical, liquid treatment applied to the back of the neck, shampoos, sprays and powders. Some products kill both adult fleas and their eggs, but they can vary in efficacy” (“Fleas,” n.d., emp. added; cf. “Controlling Fleas…,” 2012). “Also, it is important to treat your yard as thoroughly as your house. Concentrate on shady areas, where fleas live, and use an insecticide or nematodes, microscopic worms that kill flea larvae” (“Fleas,” emp. added). And how does PETA propose to deal with the flea problem?

Although PETA encourages nonlethal methods of insect control whenever possible, we realize that lethal methods sometimes must be used to combat insects…. For a flea infestation, sprinkle carpets with diatomaceous earth…, leave it down overnight, then vacuum it up. This will kill most fleas (“What is the…?,” n.d., emp. added). Vacuum your house as frequently as possible, and stow the vacuum bag inside a plastic bag in your freezer to kill any fleas or flea eggs that you happened to vacuum up…. Diatomaceous earth…will kill fleas by causing them to dehydrate…. Keep your grass cut short, and try dousing it with beneficial nematodes―these are roundworms who aremore than happy to dine on flea larvae (“The ABCs of…,” n.d., emp. added).

Observe the self-contradiction and utter hypocrisy of the left: Dog owners should be prosecuted for allowing their pets to become flea infested. But how does one prevent dogs from becoming flea infested? Kill the fleas, of course. But wait! What about the fleas? Who is sticking up for theirrights? Don’t they have the same right to life as dogs? And where is the consistency in treating a flea problem by attacking the environment with insecticide, let alone promoting interspecies conflict by assisting one specie (nematodes) to devour another specie (fleas)? Causing slow death to fleas by dehydration is surely as cruel as starving a dog.

Such is the absurdity and insanity of any viewpoint that conflicts with the Creator’s communication regarding the environment and its constituent variables. “Celebrating” animals is conspicuously tantamount to “worshipping and serving the creature rather than the Creator” (Romans 1:25)—a social circumstance that signals a depraved period in history in which people became “futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools” (Romans 1:21-22). Such a period is inevitably accompanied by “vile passions” and a militant refusal to “retain God in their knowledge” (vss. 26,28). Does this social scenario not describe America today?

What should one expect when 50 years ago American school children began being taught in earnest that they owe their ultimate origin to naturalistic, mechanistic forces of “nature”—rocks and dirt if you will? What should one expect since God and the Bible have been systematically banned from public education? We should fully expect to see precisely what we’re seeing in American civilization—hedonism, the increase of atheism, embracing and welcoming animism and pagan religion (i.e., Hinduism and Buddhism), and a host of other maladies that will spell the demise of the Republic.

Hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of dollars and man hours have been spent in the last few decades to protect animals and punish those deemed cruel to animals. Yet paralleling this period in America, unborn humans have been slaughtered by the millions. Moral sensibilities can be defined and governed only by God, since “the way of man is not in himself; It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps” (Jeremiah 10:23). As God and the principles of Christianity are jettisoned from American culture, so consistent, logical living of life must dissolve as well. The solution is to saturate the American mind once again with the truths of the Bible. There is no other solution. As the 8^th century B.C. prophet plainly declared: “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20).

[DISCLAIMER NOTE: The author is not suggesting that no concern whatsoever should be given to the cruel treatment of animals. The Bible reflects a measure of concern in this regard (e.g., Proverbs 12:10; Deuteronomy 22:6-7). The problem is that those who neglect or abandon the Christian worldview inevitably develop an inflated preoccupation with animals as pets and assign a value and significance to animals that is unwarranted and ultimately counterproductive to civilized society.]

REFERENCES

“The ABCs of Cruelty-Free Flea Control” (no date), PETA, http://www.peta.org/living/companion-animals/The-ABCs-of-Cruelty-Free-Flea-Control.aspx.

“About Us: Overview” (2011), The Humane Society, September 19, http://www.humanesociety.org/about/overview/.

Berke, Ned (2012), “23 Dogs Recovered From Sheepshead Bay Couple,” Sheepshead Bites, February 16, http://www.sheepsheadbites.com/2012/02/breaking-bay-couple-arrested-for-cruelty-to-animals-20-dogs-recovered-from-two-homes/.

Braden, Tyra (1992), “Woman Fined For Housing Flea-infested Pets Lehighton Resident Convicted Of Cruelty To Animals, Other Charges,” The Morning Call, November 11, http://articles.mcall.com/1992-11-11/news/2887493_1_cruelty-trash-disposal-animals.

“Case Updates” (2009), Pet-Abuse.com, March 8, http://www.pet-abuse.com/cases/14626/MO/US/#ixzz1tFexUsg2http://www.pet-abuse.com/cases/14626/MO/US/.

“Controlling Fleas and Ticks on Your Pets” (2012), The Humane Society, January 23, http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/resources/tips/controlling_flea_ticks_pets.html.

“Dogs Neglected, Flea Infestation Stonington, CT (2009), September 4, Pet-Abuse.com, http://www.pet-abuse.com/cases/15777/CT/US/.

Eims, Penny (2012), “Florida Man Arrested on Two Counts of Animal Cruelty for Neglecting Dogs,” Examiner, April 13, http://www.examiner.com/article/florida-man-arrested-on-two-counts-of-animal-cruelty-for-neglecting-dogs.

“Flea-infested, Emaciated Dog Thrown from Truck Manteca, CA” (2011), Pet-Abuse.com, July 25, http://www.pet-abuse.com/cases/18389/CA/US/.

“Fleas” (no date), ASPCA, http://www.aspca.org/pet-care/dog-care/dog-care-fleas.aspx.

Michigan Animal Abuse Cases (2011), http://files.meetup.com/1258100/MichiganAnimalAbuseCases_v1.pdf.

“Six Dogs Seized From Flea Infested Property Iron Mountain Lake, MO” (2008), Pet-Abuse.com, September 25,
http://www.pet-abuse.com/cases/14626/MO/US/#ixzz1tFexUsg2http://www.pet-abuse.com/cases/14626/MO/US/.

“What is the best way to get rid of fleas and ticks?” (no date), PETA, http://www.peta.org/about/faq/What-is-the-best-way-to-get-rid-of-fleas-and-ticks.aspx.