ご報告したいことは山ほどあるのですが、今回は先日保護したダックスの女の子のことを話したいと思います
It's been a while since I last posted.
I have a mountain of things I want to report, but this time I want to talk about a dachshund girl I took in the other day.
I was contacted by a shelter affiliate about a dachshund in the animal control center with a thoracic vertebral fracture and suppressed urination problems. I decided to take her in since it seemed like an emergency, and I doubted anyone else would be willing to help her. I took her straight from the center to our family vet and asked about her situation.
話が来た時に真っ先に思ったことがドンちゃんの事。
ホームセンターの駐車場に捨てられたドンちゃん。保護した時に下半身麻痺があったけどリハビリや鍼治療で歩けるようになって今は里親さんの元で幸せに暮らしているドンちゃん。だから今回も「半身不随にはなっても車椅子という選択肢もあるし」と、それほど悲観していなかったのです。
When I received the initial news about her, my mind immediately jumped to Don-chan.
Don-chan was abandoned in the parking lot of a home improvement center. When I took him in, he was paralyzed from the waist down, but through rehabilitation and acupuncture, he became able to walk again. Now he's living happily with a new family. That's why this time I figured that even with her lower half malfunctioning, we might be able to get her a little wheelchair, and that it wasn't quite such a tragedy.
ところが、病院に着くと先生の顔が思いのほかシブい。
レントゲン写真を見ながら説明を受けて、思っていたよりずっと深刻な状態であることがわかりました。
However, when I took her to the vet, the doctor's face was much more stern than I had expected.
They explained to me with X-rays that the situation was much more serious than previously thought.
脊髄が強く障害されると脊髄の融解壊死が起こることがあります。障害を受けた部位から頭側に炎症、浮腫が波及しどんどん脊髄を軟化（壊死）させていきます。そして最終的に延髄という生命維持に重要な神経をも軟化してしまいます。その結果として痛み、呼吸困難によって命を落としてしまいます。発症してしまえば100％に近い確率で死に至ります。
1) Her thoracic vertebrae has broken, and her spinal cord has snapped
Severe damage to the spinal cord may lead to fusion necrosis. Inflammation from the damaged area up to the side of the head will result, causing swelling to spread and further weakening (necrosis) of the spinal cord. In the end, the medulla oblongata, which controls the nerves vital to life support, will also weaken. As a result, she will pass away in pain from difficult breathing. If this happens, it's almost 100% guaranteed to result in death.
2）子宮蓄膿症があること
ただ、不幸中の幸いだったのは膿が外に出る開放性のものであったことです。今の状態では手術はできないので薬で抑えながら体力に回復を待つことにしました。
2) Pyometra (a life-threatening infection of the uterus)
In the midst of all this misfortune, at least the pus was able to go out. She's unable to get surgery in her current condition, so we just have to try and control it with medicine and wait for her to gain her strength back.
とにかく今は軟化症が起こらない様に祈るしかありません。
In any case, all we could do now is just pray that the weakening doesn't happen.
毎日様子を見に面会に行くのですが、目に力がない様な気がしました。視線も泳いでいるというかどこを見ているのかわからない感じ。脳の異常は見られないということなのでショックで鬱になちゃったのかな。名前はジョイスとつけました。ジョイス、元気になって一緒にお家に帰ろう
I go to check up on her every day, but I got the feeling that she doesn't have any strength in her eyes. Her eyes are swimming around, and I can't tell where she's looking at. She doesn't seem to have any brain problems, so it's possibly depression resulting from shock. I decided to name her Joyce. Joyce, when you get better, let's go home together.
外傷がないのです
最初に話を聞いた時に、迷子になっている時に車にはねられたのだと勝手に思っていたのですが体に傷がないのです
どんなケースで胸椎が折れるのか調べて見ました。
At one point, I notice something.
She doesn't have any external wounds.
When I first heard about her, I just figured she was probably hit by a car when she was lost, but there are no visible wounds.
I looked up what sort of cases would result in broken thoracic vertebrae.
・交通事故
・高所から落ちる
・腫瘍や内分泌疾患で徐々に骨が弱り骨折する病的骨折
・強く蹴られたり殴られたりなどの虐待
- A car accident
- Falling from a high location
- A pathological fracture causing gradual bone weakening and fractures due to tumors or an endocrine disorder
- Abuse, such as being strongly kicked or hit
子宮蓄膿症はあるけどこれが病的骨折に結びつくとは思えない。骨折になる前に敗血症だよね。交通事故や高所から落ちたのなら体に擦り傷とか打撲とか傷ができると思う。例えば鼻や肉球などの毛のないところとか肘、膝、肩などの関節部など。
She has pyometra, but this doesn't connect with any pathological bone fractures. There's blood poisoning before bone fractures, right? Falling from a high place or being hit by a car would cause scratches and bruising, such as on the hairless parts of her, like her nose and paws, or joints like her knees, elbows, or shoulders.
調べていて興味深い記事を見つけました
事故にあった動物と虐待を受けた動物の見分け方
I found the above article while doing my research, titled "How to tell if an animal has been abused vs. involved in an accident"
以下、サイトからの転載
事故例では四肢の先端や骨盤から下の領域の外傷が多くなるという特徴が見いだされました。これはオートバイや車から逃げようとしているタイミングで衝突されることが多いからだと推測されます。一方、虐待例では頭や肋骨（特に上部）の骨折が多くなるという特徴が見いだされました。これは虐待者が拳や足先、あるいは鞭や棒の様な道具を用いて動物に危害を加えたからだと推測されます。
転載ここまで
This is what it says:
"Accidents frequently result in wounds to the tips of the limbs or below the pelvis--it is believed that this is due to being hit often right when the animal is trying to get out of the way of a motorcycle or car. On the other hand, abuse often results in fractures to the head and ribs (especially the upper ribs). It is believed that this is due to the abuser using their fists, feet, or items such as whips or sticks to inflict damage to the animal."
ジョイスはやはり虐待されたのではないだろうか？
証拠はないから確定はできないし、仮にできたとしても飼い主がわからないからどうしようもない。
So, Joyce was abused?
We don't have any hard proof, so I can't say for sure, and even if we did, we don't know who previously owned her, so there's nothing we could do anyways.
動愛法でも虐待や遺棄の禁止が記されています
・愛護動物をみだりに殺したり傷つけた者
→2年以下の懲役または200万円以下の罰金
・愛護動物に対しみだりに餌や水を与えずに衰弱させるなどの虐待を行なった者
→100万円以下の罰金
・愛護動物を遺棄した者
→100万円以下の罰金
It's a well-known fact that many arrested criminals also have a high rate of a history of animal abuse.
Animal welfare laws list the following bans on abuse and abandonment:
- For the reckless murder of or infliction of damage to a pet: up to 2 years of imprisonment or a fine of up to 2,000,000 yen.
- For abuse related to weakening due to withholding of food or water to a pet: a fine of up to 1,000,000 yen.
- For the abandonment of a pet: a fine of up to 1,000,000 yen.
放置すれば将来より凶悪な犯罪を起こす可能性がある動物虐待なのに罰則がコレですか？って大きな不満があるのですが、それより更に問題なのは「この法律が本当に活かされているのか？」という事です。
This is all they get for animal abuse, which so often leads to even worse crimes in the future? Well, I have a lot of issues with the laws, but more importantly is the issue of whether these laws are actually enforced properly.
矢板の引き取りやの件にしても「まさかの不起訴」になってしまったわけです。
ある法律に詳しい方の話だと、「これがもっと動物に対する意識が高い県で起きたことだったら不起訴はなかっただろう」とのことでした。
でも、それっておかしいですよね？場所によって適用されるところとそうでないところがあるということになるわけですから。
役所や警察などの「現場」が法律という「道具」を使いこなせていないということですよね。動愛法は「絵に描いた餅」なのでしょうか？
どんなに法の強化をしてもそれが適正に使われなければ全く意味がないんですよ
（動愛法関連でもう一つお話ししたいことがあるのです。それは後日改めて）
Even the middleman in Yaita wasn't prosecuted.
According to someone I know who's familiar with law, "If this had taken place in a prefecture with more awareness for animal welfare, this may not have been the result."
But isn't that in and of itself odd? That means that whether or not these laws are enforced is basically dependent on location.
It means that officials and police aren't using the rule of law effectively. So animal welfare laws are just some sort of lofty ideals?
No matter how strict the laws become, it means nothing if they're not enforced properly.
(There's one more thing I want to talk about related to animal welfare laws, but I'll save that for another day.)
話が逸れてしまいました
But we've gotten off track.
入院8日目、面会をした時に瞬膜が出ていてさらに気力が下がっている感じを受けました。食事も全く摂っていない様でシリンジでの強制給餌がされているとのこと。
On the 8th day of her hospitalization, her nictitating membrane was protruding, and I got the feeling that her energy levels have gone even farther down. She had stopped eating, and was getting her nutrients through a syringe.
その日、夜遅くに呼吸が乱れ体温も下がってしまい、先生も力を尽くしてくださったのですが呼吸不全で息を引き取りました。ジョイスは軟化症を起こしてしまったのです。
呼吸不全… 苦しかったと思います。最後の最後まで苦しんでの旅立ちになってしまいました。
「やっと楽になったんだね」なんてとても言えません。
推定7〜9歳。生きている間に愉しい思いはしたのだろうか。幸せだと、愛されていると感じたことはあっただろうか。
"Maybe this is it..."
Late into that night, her breathing got worse, and her body temperature went down. The doctors did all they could, but she became unable to breathe. Joyce had passed on. The tissue softening had happened.
Respiratory failure...she must have suffered. Her final moments of life had been painful, and then she left us.
I can't even say that at least she's comfortable now.
I guessed she was around 7 to 9 years old. I wonder if she ever had any happy moments during her life? Had she ever felt happiness or love?
身勝手で無責任な人間の被害者がまた増えた
One more tick to the tally of innocent victims of gross and irresponsible humans.
ごめんね、ごめんね
どうか生まれ変わってきた時には今生の分まで幸せな犬生を送れます様に
I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
May you live a happy next life when you are reborn.
ぽちっと応援お願いします Every bit of support helps
