While we were visiting Miami for the Readers' Favorite book awards ceremony, my friend Claire Stanton Wells sent me a link to this article about Georgia Regents University and unnecessary, painful dental experiments being performed on dogs under the guise of scientific research. Quite frankly, the story got my blood boiling. It shouldn't be very difficult to guess which side I will naturally take in this controversy -- the side of the dog, of course. Otherwise, I should be forced to give back the gold medal I just received for my book Always a Next One: true stories of dog fostering. I simply cannot and will not tolerate the idea of dogs or cats being tortured or  allowed to suffer needlessly, especially not here in my home state. The salient facts in the article were quite clear--dogs have been used for the purposes of experimental dental surgery, and then put to death for a piece of their jaw. For those of us dedicated to the cause of animal rescue, this needless and barbaric practice is totally unacceptable. It flies in the face of everything rescue groups stand for. Life is a precious gift, not to be squandered for frivolous reasons. These poor animals deserve better. Humane advocate Nathan Winograd has demonstrated that given time, no-kill shelters will work. Man's best friend should never put to sleep for lack of space, or the want of a good home. Only incurably sick animals, or those suffering from severe injury that cannot be healed and rehabilitated should ever be humanely euthanized. Aggressive spay-and-neuter or "SNAP" programs have … [Read more...]