31 Days to End Cruelty

Is Animal Cruelty Spinning Out of Control?

411 CRUELTY CASES

Pellets are easy to spot in the x-ray of a cat found shot in North Charleston.

31 DAYS TO END CRUELTY

In the past five years, Charleston Animal Society has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars fighting cruelty. Charleston Animal Society has treated countless victims of abuse, sends emergency response teams to cruelty cases, offers rewards to flush out leads for investigators and sponsored training seminars for ACOs. The Animal Society also provides complementary veterinary forensics, including necropsies, to law enforcement. Cruelty has spiraled out of control to the point Charleston Animal Society is dedicating the entire month of July to the cause. You can join the “31 Days to End Cruelty” campaign and double your donation. Every citizen can participate by donating at CharlestonAnimalSociety.org/ EndCruelty. During this special campaign, every donation made will be matched dollar-for-dollar up to $50,000. Community leaders including Shelly Leeke Law Firm, Paige and Tommy Hall, Jimmy Baldrick and Marge Lawson, and an Anonymous Friend of Animals have come together to create this $50,000 challenge.

THE LIST OF ANIMAL CRUELTY CASES AROUND SOUTH CAROLINA READS LIKE A GROTESQUE HORROR NOVEL:

LOWCOUNTRY

• Man kills puppy by throwing him from a balcony • 49 cats seized from hoarding case in

Colleton County • Dog left in ditch to die after being shot • Cat shot with pellet gun on street • Dog chronically abused and allegedly killed by family member • Three separate dogs with gunshot wounds found in Orangeburg County

STATE

• Union County man tortures dog by screwing his paws to a wall • 30 dogs and cats found dead at a

Columbia rescue

• 38 horses found neglected in Spartanburg • Dog found in Elloree, SC that appears to have been stabbed

• 150 dogs seized from a Pickens County puppy mill • Clarendon County man throws hound dog in a hole after shooting her On March 16, Charleston Animal Society’s President and CEO Joe Elmore, CAWA, CFRE, stood in front of a unified group of Animal Control Officers from around the Lowcountry, challenging the community to get more involved in the fight against animal cruelty. “We have seen 411 animals killed, abused or neglected, some in heinous ways, here in Charleston County and across our entire state since January, and it continues to escalate,” said Elmore. “We need our community to help us stand up and end cruelty once and for all. Regardless of your concern for animals, studies indicate there is a link between animal cruelty and human violence. Humans are at risk too.”

All cruelty victims were memorialized at a special opening ceremony of Celebrity Paws in the Park on Saturday, March 19 at Riverfront Park in North Charleston, where a bell was rung in their memory.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

There are ways each of us can help stop cruelty. If you see something, say something. Animal Control Officers (ACO) are ready and willing to investigate your concerns, but they need a tip or phone call to get started. If you see an animal in immediate danger, call 911. Take photos or video of animals you are concerned about. Never trespass on private property and don’t place yourself in danger. “Support organizations that are fighting cruelty,” said Charleston Animal Society Vice President of Operations and Strategy Aldwin Roman, CAWA.