How much is a leg worth? In NYC, the going rate for a human leg is between $2 million – $10 million. Yes, if you live in NYC and you were to lose your leg right now due to someone else’s negligence, the courts would award you over 8 or 9 figures for your injury, the pain & suffering it caused and the effects it would have on your life.
But what if you were a dog? Would it be worth anything then? While no court will award a dog any money for the loss of its leg, we’re willing to wager the dog will still suffer, that he will still feel pain, that his life will still be affected.
Meet Scrappy, a young, vibrant 4 month old Chihuahua mix puppy.
Scrappy entered the Manhattan shelter on December 11th, a little dehydrated and with a little bit of diarrhea. Know something else he had? Four legs. Fast forward 10 days to December 21st – that’s the day that Scrappy became a “tri-pod.”
All we know is that Scrappy was in a top cage at Manhattan AC&C and somehow his leg got broken. Was he allowed to jump down from the top tier cage due to the worker’s laziness? Was he pulled out of his cage so roughly that his leg got caught in the bars and subsequently broke? Was he just man-handled by someone 10 times his weight? We don’t know. We probably won’t ever know. But somehow Scrappy’s leg was broken while at Manhattan AC&C and the decision was made to amputate it.
Yes, there are many dogs who go on to live completely normal lives with just three legs. We’re sure Scrappy will make out just fine in life – that he will learn to navigate the streets of NYC with three legs, he will one day happily hop along next to his person who will still see him as “whole.” But the point is that he shouldn’t have to learn to walk again. The point is that this never should have happened. Had someone taken the time to properly remove Scrappy from his cage, he would still have four legs. Now, his footprint will forever be altered.
Wake up NYC AC&C. When will you start to emphasize the CARE in your name and not just the CONTROL?. Your mission states that your goal is “To promote and protect the health, safety and welfare of pets and people in New York City.” Would the people of NYC just look the other way if it were NYC’s Administration for Children’s Services that was not living up to its mission? NYC Animal Care & Control should be held to the same standards as other city-run organizations charged with caring for and protecting the welfare of its residents. But NYC AC&C is once again falling short of its promise. Far short. And once again, they are trying to hide what happened and cover it up. Scrappy has been moved to a foster home set up by AC&C. Yes, after his leg was broken and then amputated due to their negligence and incompetence, ACC is trying to sweep him under the rug and keep it all hush-hush. We believe Scrappy’s story deserves to be heard, he deserves a voice.
Scrappy’s thread: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=326940527318833&set=a.161896683823219.39456.152876678058553&type=3&theater
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