If there is an animal heaven, then St. Peter would certainly appoint Ms. Syeadha Manbodh an angel there.

The suffering often visited upon these hapless creatures of the animal world by their owners and the public at large makes one wonder at the irony at branding one ‘dumb’ and one ‘human.’

Several cases have come to light over the years of dogs mauling persons, sometimes to death. The pitbull has been one of the worst offenders, and the cry for their destruction has been loud and strident.

But has anyone ever wondered why the dogs should be punished in preference to the owners?

There are instances where traffic offenders are sanctioned by the law and denied licences to drive on the public highways for varying periods, depending on the severity of the charges and the individual magistrate or judge.

So why, if a person dies, or is seriously injured because of the neglect of a dog-owner to safely secure their animals, the owner is not penalised by being denied the right to the ownership and/or care of dogs within a specified duration; or better yet, for their entire lives?

Some dogs are trained to attack persons who venture into designated areas, but how could a dog recognise a friend from an enemy? And how can a dog recognise a demarcated line if a fence is breached? Who is the culprit if a dog, trained to attack, assumes this mode, having been left untended and free to roam the public thoroughfares?

The laws of* a country are structured to protect the citizens of the land, but what laws protect the ‘dumb’ animals, which cannot argue a case in their own defence?

Many advocates for human rights have forgotten that there is a greater calling, and that it is the right of all living creatures, living in captivity, to have care and protection.

Until a society recognises this as an imperative, then we will forever have recalcitrant dog owners leaving their animals free to pose a danger both to themselves and victims made vulnerable and subject to attacks by animals, which cannot differentiate between a criminal and someone in pursuit of their lawful business.

In a subsequent editorial we will explore in greater detail the inhumane practices, in general, visited upon helpless creatures, which have no means of defence after they have only acted in ways peculiar to their instincts, by owners who use, misuse, and often abuse animals, supposedly under their care and protection, and members of the general public.

Until legislation is enacted to bring these culprits to justice, animals will continue to be blamed and mistreated by the society for crimes of which their owners/handlers are culpable.

So animal heaven has a special place reserved for the likes of Ms. Syeadha Manbodh, who has unstintingly served the animal world with service beyond the call of duty, and beyond the realms of humanity, into the sphere of the angels.