Not A Pet's Paradise

I apologize in advance if this sounds like a Sarah McLachlan SPCA commercial. 

Uganda is home to many animals.

 Elephants, giraffes, zebras, lions, mountain gorillas, buffalo, warthogs and other wild animals take shelter in protected parks.

Chickens, cows, goats and pigs roam the streets avoiding the inevitable encounter with the local butcher.

As I walked to the office this morning, trying to avoid the encroaching wall of dust thanks to the passing matatu, I saw something that broke my heart. 

Now there are two animals I left out: cats and dogs.  What we in America consider to be pets are considered to be pesky animals to many Ugandans living outside of Kampala.  You usually see these animals taking shelter from local kids, who are usually throwing rocks at them for fun.

Today on my way to work I saw this old man with a long stick beating a small sized animal.

If it were a rat, I would have continued on my way.

But it was a puppy. 

A PUPPY!

I quickly approached the old man and using my most basic Lwo language skills told him to stop.  From our short non-verbal conversation I concluded that someone threw the puppy on the Post Office steps to abandon it, the old man did not want it and when the puppy didn’t get up on its own he began to beat it.

As that is encouraging sign to leave…

I begged him to stop hitting the puppy and even as I bent down to pick the little guy up he continued to swat at it.

Off I went with this puppy tucked under my arm.  His body was shaking and his legs were stiff.  For a slight moment I thought to myself, “Oh my gosh, I am holding a dead dog.”

Luckily I was wrong.

When I got to the office I was able to clean him off.  He finally got the courage to walk around without fearing that someone would come along with the intent to hurt him.  Obviously I also named him.

Little Finn after my beloved Glee character.  May real life Finn Hudson/Cory Monteith RIP.

I now desperately needed to figure out what to do with him.  I could take him back to my compound but there are two full-grown dogs living there and I was not sure how they would get along.  I could call my family asking to pick up some anti-flea shampoo and send it here as soon as possible.

I can only imagine that conversation.

I decided to trust a staff member who had wanted a dog for her compound.  She promised that she would not ever beat it.

I caved.

I believe that Little Finn will be just fine.  After he plumps up a bit from some milk and posho, I know he will be king of the village.