Lawrence Hall, HSG
Mhall46184@aol.com
Does Your Dog Carry
its Hunting License?
Around dusk one day last week Astrid-the-Wonder-Dachshund
was struck during a scrap with a snake, leading to several days of pain and
grotesque swelling for the pup.
We immediately gave the dog a couple of eyedroppers of
liquid Benadryl, which we keep for that purpose, and after a rough night took
Astrid to Dr. Leah. With injections and take-home meds, the dog improved rapidly
and is back to her usual spoiled, demanding, insolent, dachshund self.
In the light of day I found a scrap of snake skin (Astrid’s
pal Luna-Dog is a mighty warrior, and takes no prisoners) and identified the
reptile as a copperhead, one of the most common of poisonous pit vipers.
I looked up copperheads on the InterGossip and learned
that “The copperhead is not a protected species in Texas and can be legally
collected with a hunting license” [Southern
Copperhead (A Guide to Snakes of Southeast Texas) ·iNaturalist].
Luna-Dog does not have a hunting license. I have one, but
I never thought it was necessary for killing an unprotected species whose bite
can be fatal to children and small animals, and in some circumstances to an
adult [Can a
Copperhead Snake Kill a Human? (snakesforpets.com)].
What committee of the ill-educated whose knowledge of
animals comes only from Disney cartoons decided that a hunting license is
necessary before protecting children and pets from a dangerous snake?
As the overworked, overtaxed, and underpaid boatman says
to Thomas More in A Man for All Seasons, “whoever makes the regulations
doesn’t row a boat.”
I had looked up the species of snake for my own safety’s
sake because the Wise Ones in Austin sometimes seem to care more for the
wellbeing of alligators and some deadly snakes than they do for our children. The
copperhead, happily, is not protected except for the necessity of a hunting
license and so I am free to congratulate Luna-Dog for killing the beast.
Another article on the InterGossip detailed ways of
live-trapping copperheads and other poisonous snakes so that they can be
relocated to the wild.
Yes, Friend Reader, I’m thinking the same thing as you. Saint
Matthew says that we shouldn’t call anyone a fool, but apparently there are
exceptions.
Recently some of our Austin Wise Ones avoided their
duties and fled to D. C., purportedly because they felt (hardly thought) that
the right to vote is endangered in Texas. Two of these Wise Ones then decided
to work courageously for Texas on the beaches of Portugal [Where
in the world are Texas Democrats Julie Johnson and Jessica González?
(dallasnews.com)] and [2 Texas
Democratic legislators are vacationing in Portugal after fleeing the state over
GOP elections bill: report (msn.com)].
And if that isn’t the good old fighting spirit of Texas,
I don’t know what is.
Perhaps while they are fighting the good fight in
Portugal for the rights of Texans they will also spare a thought for correcting
some of our fatally misguided game laws.
Ours, not Portugal’s.
-30-
No comments:
Post a Comment