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The
Lincoln Daily News publishes letters to the editor as
they are received.
The letters are not edited in content and do not
necessarily reflect
the views of Lincoln Daily News.
Lincoln Daily News requests that writers responding to
controversial issues address the issue and refrain from
personal attacks. Thank you!
.
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Letters to the Editor
Lincoln Daily News
601 Keokuk St.
Lincoln, IL 62656
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To the editor:
Bob Graue was the
winner of four tickets to the Illini-Wisconsin football game on
Sept. 27. The drawing was Monday, Sept. 8, at Sports Plus in
Lincoln.
Thanks to everyone
who participated in this local fund-raiser for multiple sclerosis. $1,165 was raised for the benefit of
people living with multiple sclerosis.
Bob Graue in turn
donated the tickets to the Rotary Club, which auctioned them, and
the Rotary Foundation is the benefactor of that auction.
Nancy Ireland
Lincoln committee of the
Multiple Sclerosis Society
[posted 9-20-03] |
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Editor's note:
In the Sept. 5
edition of LDN, an article appeared about the Logan County Animal
Control improvements, plans and current issues. Logan County Animal
Control Committee Chairman Patrick O'Neill has been doing and has
more plans to do actions the Bakers so excellently suggest.
The animal control's stage three plan increases efforts to educate
the public about the importance of spaying and neutering animals.
"In phase three they
will be taking animals out to schools, nursing homes and other
places. They have done some of this already and it has been
effective. They will work at public awareness and education about
the importance of population control through spaying and neutering,
particularly for outdoor pets."
(http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2003
/Sep/05/News_new/today_a.shtml)
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Dear Editor:
We are writing
concerning the proposal to start charging a drop-off rate for
animals taken to our local shelter. Will people ignore or abandon an
animal that needs care because they cannot afford or do not want the
expense? Why are we paying taxes for a county service that we might
have to start paying additional charges for if we need the service?
We had a cat that
appeared earlier this spring. She lived on our patio for the
weekend. My husband had been all over our neighborhood and was
unable to locate the owner. He had to catch the cat and take it to
the local shelter. It is a very hard thing to do if you love animals
-- not knowing what will happen to them. We wanted to make sure the
cat had a chance at a good home. We would have paid if necessary --
but will others? Is everyone in the county paying their fair share
for the shelter?
We believe you get
"pets for life." They are yours from the moment you add them into
your family. We "planned" all of our animals -- even the little
moggy that our vet rescued. We discussed adding on another before
bringing him home. Our vet showed Cagney to all of the cat lovers
for one week before finding him a home. She worked hard to get him a
lifetime, indoor-only home.
[to top of second column in
this letter] |
We are very thankful
that we now have hardworking staff at our local shelter who are
willing and able to make the changes necessary to make it "no-kill."
Shelters nationwide average 16 animals per year euthanized for every
1,000 residents -- alarming if you read it in print. The good news
is that shelters who work hard to change their approach to shelter
care are able to get the rate down to eight animals per year for
every 1,000 residents. U.S. Census Logan County population 2001
estimate is 30,805 people. That means without a "no-kill" approach
approximately 492 animals will be euthanized this year, but if we
are all willing to work toward changes, we can save 246 animals.
That is almost five animals per week, placed into a family, that
become pets for life.
The local animal
shelter has made wonderful changes over the fast few months, and I
really appreciate everyone who has taken part. But they have done
little to address the cause of the problem: the exploding population
of unwanted pets. We need to put public money toward spaying and
neutering and increase public awareness of sterilization. The
shelter has adopted the position of "no kill" so that they are able
to provide high-quality animals for adoption while also providing
the spay, neuter and companion animal health programs required to
cure the problem of companion animal overpopulation. Animal shelters
are NOT the answer to this problem, preventative programs are.
Shelters made the
following changes to get their "kill" rates down:
1. Increase
sterilizations and public education. Provide free and low-cost spay
and neuter services, plus rabies vaccinations.
2. Increase the
number of animals adopted from the shelter.
3. Embed microchips
in animals that leave the shelter so, if they're picked up as
strays, the owners can be identified.
4. Trap and neuter
feral cats.
5. Help pet owners
train their adopted animals so they don't develop behavioral
problems and get returned to the shelter.
Please take time
today to let your county representative know you are a "pet for
life" person, and fight for the animals at our local shelter to
finally have a home for life.
Sincerely,
Robert and Diane Baker
[posted 9-17-03] |
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To the editor:
Hello. My name is
Michelle and I grew up in Lincoln. The reason that I am writing this
today is because I want to make sure that all children remain
healthy. Please make [sure] your child gets all their immunizations.
Right now my
4-week-old daughter is in the PICU at St. John's Hospital in
Springfield with whooping cough. Because of her age she has not yet
had her DPT shot, but PLEASE make sure that your child is up to
date!!
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She has been in ICU
for five days now. She is on oxygen, IVs, all kinds of monitors and
even a feeding tube. They put a tube in her because she gets so
tired from her coughing spells that she is too tired to eat. That's
because during these spells her little 8 pound, 8 ounce body goes
through so much. Her heart rate goes from 70 to 190 in a matter of a
few seconds to a few minutes.
I would hate for any
child or parent to go through this. While she is getting some
better, this will be a slow recovery for her as well as for the rest
of our family.
Michelle (LaMaster)
Durbin
[posted 9-15-03] |
