Being that I am a vegetarian and have strong opinions about what human and animal rights mean to me, I was very excited to head to Serenity Springs Sanctuary and Animal Shelter. I didn’t know this place even existed until I looked it up online, and when I did I was instantly drawn in. Not only do I agree and have the same kind of philosophy as Terry, but the lifestyle that was shown to me was something I think is hard to find. From what she does with the animals and how she treats them to the removed environment and nature she surrounds herself with, it gave me hope that there are people out there who not only believe in the same way of life that I do, but live it fully. What I got out of this trip was more than I thought I would. I was expecting to have a certain confirmation of my lifestyle choices through the lens of the treatment of the animals, but I wasn’t expecting to be so drawn in to the motives and way of life of the people who are so dedicated to keeping a shelter like this going. It really did show me a more progressive way of how shelters should be.
In keeping of this idea of progressivism, I feel like the biggest contribution I can make is donating money, and more importantly time, to organizations like Serenity Springs. While I believe volunteering is great in general, I feel that giving to places that are offering alternative options to whatever cause are ways that we can not only help the issue, but change it for good. Ironically, Mason and Finelli state, “While alternative, “human” animal agriculture is growing in popularity and may be preferable to factory farming, virtually all animal agriculture involves a substantial degree of animal suffering and death” (170). I consider myself to be very health conscious. Yes, I do eat all organic, however, I realize that just because something says it is organic doesn’t mean that is the best thing for you. This statement reaffirms this fact for me. When going to the shelter I asked this question many times- if animals are raised in an environment like this from the time they are born and then eaten when they die naturally, is it okay to eat meat? Though I personally wouldn’t do this, I do feel it would be okay.
When putting this shelter in context of the Francione reading, its hard to say, personally, if this shelter would be considered keeping the animals as a property or person. On one hand, I can see why someone could assume that the shelter was holding these animals hostage as property. Looking at the situation through the lens of Francione, the animals are still being treated as if they need to be taken care of-as if we are better than them and we are caring for them simply for our own self-righteous satisfaction. He would argue that if the animals are in fact equal to humans, why do we feel the need to take them in to “save” them? He might also question our intention behind why would do this. However, I can also see the other side of this. One could, ironically, relate this to certain views in feminism. Some people believe that women should have the same rights as men in every way possible (like Francione) while others believe women and men are different and should have different but equal rights. I can see how animals could be treated in this way as well. By giving them different but equal rights that doesn’t mean we have to dominate over them and think of ourselves as better. It just means that we are treating them in ways that are beneficial to them without lessening them to something lower than humans. I feel in this way, Serenity Springs healed animals in a way that was helping them become the best they could be. Because of this, I feel as though Terry’s efforts are coming from a proactive, and again progressive, state of mind.
This also reminds me of Singers arguments. When walking through the shelter I couldn’t deny the constant state of peacefulness the animals were living. Even though many of these animals were injured or hurt, I could see that they knew they were being cared for. It reminded me of when I meet people who have chronic diseases or are disabled in some major way yet they most of the time have the best outlooks on life. Singers’ ideas mirror many of Francione’s, and when I was at the shelter I noticed just how much my way of thinking is not like theirs. My immediate thought was that these animals are so lucky that they are in a place like Serenity Springs. However, as I sat down to write this blog, I realized this way of thinking contradicts what these philosophers have to say. These are just a few of the many animals out there that have been “caught” in order to be “saved”. As contradictory as it is to the philosophers, when I spent time at the shelter I couldn’t help but feel that the people at Serenity Springs are doing way more good than harm to these animals.
-Alek Trail
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