May 25
Obedience
In 1999, four out of five dogs that checked into Metro Detroit’s animal shelters were eventually destroyed. That’s 40,000 animals. Why such a high mortality rate?
Its not that they’re not cute, or are maimed or crippled, it is that they don’t know how to obey. According to Chris Jones, the assistant manager of the Michigan Humane Society, the dogs they have to euthanize have inadequate training in obedience.
If a dog can’t obey has little value to society, but how much value does a highly trained dog have? I guess to fully answer that question, we’d have to ask the owner of a seeing eye dog or a widow whose “guard dog” scared an intruder away.
For the people of Plymouth Township, $10,000.00 is a reasonable price tag for a K-9 officer. They use the dog to detect drugs, find missing people, track down criminals and search for evidence.
According to Terry Schoebach, the training director for the K-9 Academy, a police dog is trained to detect drugs, track criminals, conduct searches, protect their handler and in obedience. After all, even the most skilled animal is worthless if it cannot obey.
What’s the difference between 40,000 animals that have no value to society and a single German Shepherd worth $10,000.00? Certainly, the skills the animals have. but the determining factor is their ability to obey.
“And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.” 1 Samuel 15:22
Jim L. Wilson, Fresh Start Devotionals (Fresno, CA: Willow City Press, 2009).
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