Newsworthy?

I had reached out to Channel 10 to do a story on little Aayda, the kitten found in a dumspter one week ago with her legs ziptied, with blunt force trauma to her head.  It took a while for her to return my call.  When she did, she told me that the story was not newsworthy as I didn't run across a lot of cruelty cases with what I do -- and that was a story...   regardless that I feed 100s of homeless, stray and feral cats in the city every morning.  I told her that it was at least a 'feel good' story and the community should hear it.  She told me she would run it by her colleagues and get back to me, which would have been Thursday - yesterday.  She did not.  I received the following note from a woman that adopted a cat I rescued a few years ago that was found in the month of December, skin and bone, frozen and ready for death.  I took the cat under my rescue, my friend Sheryl plumped the cat up and little by little, the cat healed, we named him CHANCE, and Chance was adopted out by Jen.  Jen wrote me the following, and boy does this say it all.  I applaud you Jen, for saying what I couldn't, and here's to hoping someone notices.

Hi Janine,

I am really sorry about the news story. I read the blog today and I am really disappointed in the response about the news story for Aayda/Beanie. I find it personally devastating that a baby kitten with its legs zipped tied, beaten so badly it’s eye are filled with blood and thrown in a dumpster left to die is not considered significant enough abuse to warrant coverage. I can’t help but think she missed the big picture. She’s not the only one - it’s about ALL of them: Parker (the kitten left in the dog cage with no food or water), Sachimo (with the tumor), Big Red, the TVNRs, the abandoned cats, starving 6 pound Chance.

It makes me angry that there was no acknowledgement of the constant neglect that you see on a daily basis. Neglect is abuse. Abandoning an animal is neglect. I am the mother of 5 animals, 1 so severely neglected he almost died. If you and Sheryl were not there to meet him that day at that time, he would not have survived. My first dog is also a victim of at least neglect, if not something more. She spent her early life tied up and still has the scar to prove it. My new dog was found abandoned in the woods. When I walked her the other day and stepped over her leash, just the shadow of my foot heading towards her head sent her down into a pancake on the pavement. That was enough for me to know she has suffered abuse somewhere along the way. All stories no one knows, but the pattern exists and it is bigger than anyone wants to admit. Only 2 of my animals seem to have been spared the experience of abuse or neglect. Hopefully, most people don’t have to go through this will their animals, don’t understand and don’t know what it’s like to care for them for their entire lives with a history of abuse.

You know. You see this every single day with cats abandoned, left behind, hungry and in need of care. It’s 100’s of cats. That level of neglect in our own city (which seems to be acceptable) is not big enough for a story? Residents in the neighborhood complain about the cats, and even act out against them. They don’t acknowledge the problem, which is their own neighbors contributing to the situation by abandoning animals and not spaying/neutering. Instead they take it out on the cats. It’s not even just about the animals. If a person will neglect or abuse an animal, they will do it to a person. Think about all the problems that you see in our city on a daily basis. Drug abuse, prostitution, homelessness. Since it is only a person or 2 here and there (not 20 every day), I guess that must not be a big deal or newsworthy either.

Then I think about the bright spot. You. I know you do not do this for the recognition, and that’s not what this is about. You are the one that is out there doing it every day helping and fighting for these souls both the animals and the humans. What would have happened to Aadya, Big Red, Chance, Stevie, Monty, Annie, Winne, Ellie, Goldie, Big Ben, Henry, Jelly Bean, Violet, Daisy, Eloise, Dozer, Junebug, Simon, Joey, Jac and all the others without you. You have transformed the lives of nearly 100 cats this year alone through rescue and at least 100 more with your daily care. You are the person that is willing to give the homeless person a blanket or stop to help them. You move people to support you, to help and to give. Apparently that’s not very “newsworthy” either.

That is something that was also missed. They missed out on highlighting how things can be different and be better. They missed the outpouring of support from your family and Janine supporters for the homeless couple and what an impact that could have made on their lives. I wonder if a story would have helped to find them. We helped a kitty and we were all ready to turn around help them too. I find it sad that will never be able to happen. I am so unhappy to think that instead of taking this story to try to make things different the media would rather let the status quo of abuse and neglect continue because the level isn’t “newsworthy” enough for them. In my mind, they just became part of the problem too.

Sorry for the rant, I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know. 

Aayda/Bean