Boycott To Save Dogs

As some of you probably know, Jim Willis (author of the oft-emailed “How Could You?” and best-selling Pieces of My Heart is calling for an economic boycott of Columbus County, NC to get them to stop using the gas chamber to euthanize pets. Jim’s initial letters have been circulated widely and I know a lot of us support him in this step to make even unwanted and unloved pets’ last moment humane.

This email is very long and has a lot of great information and discussion in it. Unfortunately its so long it really doesn’t fit in total on this blog. So I’ve parked this whole set of communications between Jim and defenders of the gas chamber as euthanasia. I put the entire piece on one of my personal blogs, Haint. It is at the top of the postings and will stay there for at least a week.

Here is the beginning of Jim’s email:

Folks – The animals in Columbus County, NC need your help. The first below is my response to NCRAOA, a group that defends the practice of killing animals in a gas chamber. (Other counties in NC and in other states do the same.) I apologize for the length of this, but it’s important.
Under my response is their “attack” on the original message I put out demanding that gas chamber use be abolished.

At the very bottom and most important is a list of officials and others media who need to be contacted. Please do so today, please cross-post this message and distribute it however you can. Let your local media know about this campaign and about your participation.

Thank you!
Jim

Dear North Carolina Responsible Animal Owners Alliance:

Regarding your diatribe:
Article introduced with the statement “Now circling the internet is an email message purportedly written by Jim Willis.”

There’s no “purportedly” about it – I wrote it, I signed it, I distributed it. I was previously and thankfully unaware of your group. But the moment I took a look at your website, I knew you’d be cut from the same cloth as NAIA, and it was a good reminder that some people have more time than sense. (And I just knew you’d be opposing PAWS.)

You refer to me and others as “animal rights activists.” Gee, you say that like it’s a bad thing. We’re also animal welfarists, animal protectionists, animal lovers, animal rescuers, animal advocates, and animal guardians/owners…all branches of the same tree. You I would probably call an “animal alarmist” …the type that sees “a Communist behind every bush.” The kind that tries to stamp out nonexistent fires or ignite counterproductive new ones. Hell, who cares if I like you? You are betraying the trust of the animals you pretend to be so concerned about.

Here is the contact information and what Jim asks us to do in support of the Columbus County animals:

Tell County manager Jim Varner and the County Commissioners how you’ll be voting and where you intend to not be spending money: 910-640-6630

– You can also reach them through the form at: http://www.columbusco.org/request.htm
– the Columbus County Chamber of Commerce: columbusnc@gmail.com
– the Columbus County Tourism Bureau, toll-free 800-845-8419, local 910-640-2818
– tell Animal Control director Rossie Hayes and the County Commissioners that in addition to abolishing the gas chamber and switching to EBI, the county’s animals deserve longer shelter hours in order to increase the pathetic current adoption rate, they need more than the current 72 hours before they are murdered, and that any and all help offered to save the animals should be graciously accepted.

Contact the NC Governor and Legislators and others through the links provided at Best Friends and Lieutenant Governor Beverly Perdue, ltgovernor@ncmail.net

Contact all the local media – TV, radio and newspaper – and urge them to continue their coverage of this issue. Write letters to editors.

Contact the Columbus Humane Society and offer them support for their efforts (link above), admin@columbushumanesociety.org

Contact all national animal protection organizations and ask them to focus on Columbus County, North Carolina’s use of a gas chamber.

Contact North Carolina Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services veterinarian Dr. David Marshall and ask him to help immediately abolish the use of the gas chamber in all North Carolina counties. Phone: 919-733-7601/Fax: 919-733-7601

Adapt my sample letter from the campaign for a federal humane euthanasia law and tailor it to this specific situation.

Thank you Jim for keeping on the pressure! And thank you to every Dogster and Catster who adds their voice to this good cause!