Tipton, PA

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Believes stray dog, ignored by local Catholic Church,

would have avoided injury if priest and church had done 'christian duty.'

Tipton, PA -- January 17, 2011 -- Dogs Deserve Better, a U.S. nonprofit organization working on behalf of the country's mistreated dogs, has asked the Vatican today via an e-mail to His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI for $600 to vet a shepherd shot in the head.

It's not that the group cannot afford the $600.00. Donors have stepped forward to pay vet bills for the dog, now named Ezekiel, and the alleged shooter will also have to reimburse the organization if convicted.

But founder Tamira Thayne explains that in neglecting to help the shepherd who showed up at the church just before the New Year, the church had fallen short of its moral obligations according to the Catholic Catechism, and asking the Vatican to provide the $600 serves as a lesson to American churches that animals are God's creatures.

Tamira Thayne attended the church's service after it was found that the dog had been shot to ascertain if the church was genuinely unconcerned about his welfare. She observed that "there was not one mention of Ezekiel, not one mention of his condition, not one mention of praying for him, and not one mention of contributing to his care. It was as though he never existed."

The Church's official position on animals, from the Catholic Catechism, states clearly that "Animals are God's creatures. He surrounds them with his providential care. By their mere existence they bless him and give him glory. Thus men owe them kindness. We should recall the gentleness with which saints like St. Francis of Assisi or St. Philip Neri treated animals... It is contrary to human dignity to cause animals to suffer or die needlessly."

To watch the YouTube video of the rescue of Ezekiel, visit the link at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lIdwfW0Fb4 To read news articles, releases, and the entire text of the letter, visit the site at http://www.dogsdeservebetter.org/shepherd.html

Tamira Ci Thayne

Executive Director

Dogs Deserve Better

Tipton, PA

814.941.7447

814.742.8679