To the editor:
There are a couple unsavory things going on in the area that need to stop. The first is the misguided gossip going around that the Ark Animal Sanctuary is ‘taking away’ from the Houlton Humane Society animal shelter.
Taking away what? No one’s coming forward to say, exactly. People who spread rumors are cowards and allow the gossip grapevine to pass on their griping while they hide behind anonymity or skulk in the shadows. Anyone with open eyes and an open mind can see there are many homeless, needy animals in the area, and more than one rescue/shelter group makes sense. Regardless of available spay/neuter assistance, for every person who takes advantage to stop their pets from putting forth unwanted litters, there are dozens-plus people who don’t. And those discarded animals need somewhere to go. The consensus around the area for the last couple years, and I personally heard it at town meetings and on the street, was Houlton Humane Society had too many animals and they should start killing them off.
The archaic thinking of death as a remedy has no place in a civilized society.
The people who formed Ark Animal Sanctuary recognized the need for assisting animals beyond what HHS could offer, and fortunately stepped up to the plate. And AAS, as it grows, relying solely on donations, no town contracts, will also become a haven for unwanted large companion animals.
As the volunteer who does all the Web work for both AAS and HHS, and most of their respective flyer/graphic work as well, my second complaint concerns the person or persons who rip down Ark Animal Sanctuary benefit flyers (all donated time and money) almost as soon as they’re put up on community boards. Whether it’s done for spite or malice, it shows a pettiness that is quite telling of the kind of person who does it. And the only ones it harms are the homeless animals those benefits are supporting.
In closing I just want to reiterate there is no competition between these two animal organizations. They both serve one purpose — re-homing pets.
Darlene Kenney
Linneus
