Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, November 15, 1994 TAG: 9411150110
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LESLIE TAYLOR STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"He's a strong scutter to be so malnourished," Tomlinson said. "Someone found him in a dumpster in Roanoke. He'd been living on garbage."
The dog's ribs strained against his thin coat. His legs were spindly, looking almost too fragile to support him.
Tomlinson, president of the League for Animal Protection, called a news conference Monday to raise awareness "of the plight of some of the animals that we encounter and the horrible conditions which we find them under."
The league was founded three years ago as a legislative action group with a goal of bringing about tougher laws against animal abuse. While the group still pursues that goal, it has broadened its agenda to include treatment and care of injured stray animals. At least five are referred to league members every week.
Tomlinson - standing in front of the Troutville veterinary clinic operated by one of the league members - brought out one animal after another. For each, he had a story: a hound, found wandering along the Blue Ridge Parkway; a kitten, the runt of a litter found in a box on an Interstate 81 shoulder.
"Kittens aren't the only animals we encounter, but they seem to be far more prevalent than dogs," Tomlinson said. "They're thrown into rivers and creeks. They're thrown over the fences at the [Roanoke Valley] SPCA."
Tomlinson stressed the importance of pet owners neutering or spaying their animals.
"If they do not neuter and spay and allow these animals to reproduce continuously, then it contributes tremendously to our problems and what we deal with every day," he said. "There are just not enough homes for them all. And so a lot of them are euthanized."
The number of neglected animals that league members take in has grown in the past year, Tomlinson said.
"We're called on more and more, and we're taking in more and more," he said. "We felt the time was right to call the public's attention to it, just to make them aware of how serious the situation is."
For information on the League for Animal Protection or the animals, call the Old Dominion Veterinary Clinic at (703) 992-4877.
by CNB