Английский паб как лингвострановедческая реалия

Баталина Н.

Проблема бездомных животных

Conrad Lorenz proposed a theory of origin of different kinds of dogs from wolves and from jackals independently, emphasizing diametrical distinctions between their characters and habits.

There is also a point of view, according to which the ancestor of a domestic dog is a certain independent (which is extinct nowadays) wild «ancient dog», the relative of wolves and jackals. Charles Linney supported that point of view. This hypothesis proves to be true thanks to the newest genetic researches.

The taming of dogs goes back to Mesolithic period (10-15 thousand years AC). The study of fossils of ancient dogs began in 1862 when skulls of animals of the Neolithic period were found in Switzerland. This dog is called «a peat dog» (sometimes «a pile dog») in scientific literature. Later the remains of a peat dog were found in Europe everywhere, for example, in Ladoga Lake, in Egypt, etc. The peat dog was a constant form during the Stone Age; its remains were found even in adjournment of the Roman epoch near modern German city Mainz. The direct descendant of a peat dog is considered to be spitz-like dog of Lapps.

The Ladoga Lake dog, which is larger, than a typical peat dog, refers to ancestors of mastiff-like dogs, and sometimes to ancestors of kidskin.

There were five basic types of dogs: mastiff, wolf-like dogs, greyhounds, pointer-looking dogs and the shepherd’s dogs In Bronze age (4500 AC).

On the tombs’ images in Ancient Egypt there is often a Pharaoh’s dog that has preserved all typical features of breed through millennia. The dog, as well as many other animals in Egypt, was idolized. Under the certificate of Herodotus in connection with a dog’s death there was mourning in Egyptian houses, and the owner of the house shaved off his hair. Dog’s corpses were mummified, but these mummies are rather rare, in comparison with those of cats.

Images of huge mastiffs, used for hunting and as fighting dogs, were found in other countries of the Ancient East, for example in Assyria. For example, the relief which it is kept in the British Museum represents the mastiff the great tsar Ashshurbanipal.

Dogs began to play more significant role in Ancient Greece and Rome. Naturally, fighting dogs, which were mighty and fearless, used to be in a special demand. In Alexander’s the Great army dogs occupied an honorable place. Hunting dogs, fleet and beagles were rather appreciated too.

Well-known Moloss mastiffs, whose images can be met on the coins and frescos, have given rise to many modern breeds.

In many human communities dogs are reared mainly for the culinary purposes, for example in cultures of aborigine of Oceania, Southeast Asia.

The first cultivated dogs must have been both watchmen and assistants in hunting. Then dogs were divided into groups depending on their economic purpose (assignment). Firstly, there were hunting and watch dogs, later – decorative dogs that did not perform any service. Such classification of breeds of dogs is a significant condition. With the development of the human society the usage of some breeds of dogs has radically changed. To the utmost degree it concerns hunting dogs that are now either on the verge of disappearance, or pass into the category of domestic favorites. Some of such breeds serve in police and in the social sphere, for example, Seeing Eye dog, etc.

Fossil remains of cats are found in the most ancient city of our planet – Jericho (5-6 millennium AC), at the excavation in Jordan, in the most ancient cities of India. But these animals were not quite domestic. Numerous certificates of cats in Egypt are well tracked since 3 millennia AC. On Sakkarakh’s tombs (2750-2650 AC) cats are represented with collars that certainly testify of their domestication. And on the well-known fresco from Bennie-Hasan the cat is already represented near the hostess in the house.

In the goddess Bast temples (Egyptians represented the goddess Bast either as a cat or a woman with a cat’s head) there were a lot of cats honored as sacred animals. With a cat’s death there was mourning in the family, all members of the household shaved off eyebrows as a sign of grief. The corpses of cats were embalmed and buried in magnificent tombs and there was a special cats’ cemetery. Archeologists found about 300 thousand of mummies dated to the 4-th millennium AC. The law also protected a sacred animal; in particular, a person received severe punishment (even a capital punishment) for the murder of a cat

The first hieroglyphic symbols designating words «dog» and «cat», are dated approximately to 2300 AC. They are also spelled as «mint» and «miu». But the cat was not only a sacred animal in Egypt; it was also a hunting and fighting animal.

The mentioning of cats living in medieval Europe is not numerous, the cat ceased to be a valuable rarity by the 10th century.

Nearly at the same time cats appear in Russia where this animal was considered to be suitable for priories. In Europe cats fought the epidemic of the «Black death», when their function of fighters of domestic rodents (mice, rats) was appreciated. Nevertheless, they were not popular and quite often became a victim of prejudices.

In the East cats had no exclusive position in comparison with Europe. In Islam cats are rather esteemed, the cat Muezza lived with Prophet Mohammed. In the memory of this cats were admitted to a mosque free. The cat is included into the 12 animals whose name the year of the Chinese calendar carries. In China cats and their images are considered to bring happiness. According to an ancient Persian legend, cats have appeared from a lion’s sneezing. In zoroastrizm, ancient Persians’ religion, murder of a cat is a serious crime, equal to a person’s murder. Cats occupied an important place in the countries of Indo-China. There were a lot of ancient and noble breeds: Thai, Siamese take their origin from this region where they were kept at the royal and princely courtyard. These wonderful creatures were brought to Europe by the builders of British Empire and they served a powerful spur to the cultivation of cats in England.

In 1727, the book «the History of cats», by the Frenchman Monkrifa finally «rehabilitated» the appearance of animals. The work of creating new breeds began in the 18^th century in Europe and first of all in England, and it is still continued and increased in 20th century when cats have taken the 2nd place and the first place among domestic favorites.

Time has changed, and the population of many countries has acquired a fashionable tendency to purchase exotic animals, including cats and dogs of rare breeds. Unfortunately, the majority of animals brought from the far countries are not able to adapt to the existence in the countries of Europe and Asia. They cannot endure temperature differences, their immunity falls ill. All these things cause following illnesses:

1. A person can catch skin disease, such as ringworm from a homeless animal. At this disease the person’s lymphatic nodes inflame, his head, nails, skin ache, and it is especially dangerous for children who like to play with homeless animals.

2. Homeless cats and dogs can catch fleas; which are typhus carriers and they can infect people who can also catch this similar illness. To avoid this it is necessary to keep pets clean and it is necessary to avoid homeless animals.

3. Hydrophobia. This illness is caused by an infected animal’s bite, and it is characterized by the affection of the nervous system. This disease spreads everywhere; also this disease has a very high death-rate. That is why it is necessary to conduct preventive measures against vagrant animals.

4. Mites. Dogs and cats can be intermediate carriers of various hookworms. People can catch such illness as encephalitis. It is the inflammation of brain grey substance.

5. Lice. Lice are insects without wings. They are stationary parasites of mammals, have specific owners among them and eat blood.

It is known, that any illness of a dog or a cat is easier to prevent, than to treat. That’s why the preventive measures are very important for both veterinaries, and the owners of four-legged friends.

The basic preventive measures are:

People must observe rules of maintenance and feeding of dogs and cats, take good care of them;

There must be no contact of animals with intermediate owners and carriers of parasites;

Rats and mice must be destroyed;

Catching and sterilization of rambling dogs, cats and other animals;

Isolation of ill dogs and cats;

People mustn’t feed dogs and cats with infected meat products.

Dialogue with animals enriches the inner world of a person, makes it brighter and more emotional, as it opens a window in a new earlier unknown area of concepts and representations.

Nowadays people and especially townsfolk feel some isolation from nature. More and more people would like to have cozy wildlife, for example, indoor plants, aquarium with fish, singing birds, a cat or a dog.

Modern people unlike our ancestors, who worshipped animals, treat animals, not as living creatures, but as unnecessary things which are thrown out to the street without need.

Various kinds of rare animals are brought nowadays such as reptiles, birds. These animals demand not only special conditions but also huge material expenses. The majority of such animals are in the Red Book; therefore their transportation through the border is illegal.

There are pet-shops in which various exotic kinds of animals are also sold in our city. Acquiring these animals, we are guided by extremely external parameters; without thinking that wile the animal grows it requires a special care. The majority of people cannot create necessary conditions and as a result the animal appears in the street.

It is possible nowadays to buy animals not only in pet-shops, but also in the markets, in the underground and simply in the street. And very few people understand that almost all animals in their hands are doomed for death.

According to the words of the head of «Vita», the Center of the protection for the animal’s rights, this kind of business prospers. It is advantageous to sell animals for the price of 100 or 500 rubles on the central streets of the cities. Animals are often mutilated: burn or cut ears, prick out eyes, break paws to cause big pity in passers-by. Very often swindlers repaint animals to sell them more advantageously, and the poor animal can perish from poisoning.

It is impossible to prove the sellers’ blame though there is Article 245 of the Russian Federation penal code which bans cruel treatment causing animals death, the maximal punishment can be a year of correctional work or 6– month’s arrest in Russia.

But not only sellers and beggars treat animals badly, but also public people afford similar pranks.

Several years ago the model Juliana Romanova set on her fighting dog on peacefully napping homeless mongrel. It seemed little to her, and, having got a kitchen knife from her sack, she has killed the dog.

They tried to hush up the conflict and that sadist-model was going to leave for Spain to live. But luckily the incident provoked a big boom in mass-media and shocked the public. The girl was recognized irresponsible and was sent to a psychiatric clinic.

Some time later the idea of creating a monument symbolizing the protest against the cruel treatment of animals appeared. The monument was made by the sculptor Alexander Tsigal, a famous artist – animal painter Sergey Tsigal, and an architect Andrey Nalich. Their work was charitable, and the Muscovites collected 15 thousand dollars to build a granite pedestal. For a long time the bronze dog was kept in the Darwinian museum, yet there was not a pedestal for the sculpture. But not long ago it was put on the lawful place, reminding people about the dead dog. It will remind the passers-by of compassion, empathy and understanding of animals, especially of homeless animals.

“We are in the answer for those whom we have tamed”.

Certainly, pets help people to spend leisure interestingly, fascinatingly, remove daily cares and loneliness. They also influence on people’s health positively, bring up careful attitude towards the world, animals and birds and the environment. The charm of maintenance of mammals, birds in the house is that they cease to be afraid of people very quickly, and they easily answer to their names. But, unfortunately, the owners are not always responsible for bad treatment with their pets

Today the number of homeless dogs is multiplied. According to the law of nature, they reproduce similar again and again. Despite difficult living conditions, the population of homeless animals grows very fast.

Since January, 16, 1998 there is a rule about catching and sterilization of the unsupervised animals in Moscow. The rule prohibits the murder of animals. On October, 2, 2002 the Decision of Moscow Government was passed, it said: «In 2001, Moscow Government paid more attention to problems of the human attitude to city animals. The destruction of homeless dogs and cats as a method of regulation of their number is thought to be an extremely unpopular measure among townsmen and the public. That’s why it has been replaced by the alternative strategy – sterilization». This operation is familiar to many owners of pets, both cats, and dogs. And if these medical manipulations are done with thousands of homeless dogs and cats the problem of homeless animals will disappear in future. But, unfortunately, it is only a theory. Currently/ it has been possible to sterilize more than 30 percent of homeless animals in the capital.

There is a program of building shelters for homeless animals, but there is no money in the budget to realize it. And now ten thousand homeless dogs and cats stay at the stations of the underground, in underground transitions and other places.

At the end of 2006 the Law «About the number of pets in the city of Moscow» was accepted. The document established the rules of registration and the account of domestic (and also service-) animals, the responsibility which owners carry for their pets. It is forbidden to beat and torment animals, and to use them as an instrument in crimes. The bill prescribes to sterilize homeless animals, and to kill them only «at necessary defense» or in «a case of causing a mutilation to the person by an animal».

In Electrostal, as well as in other cities, there is a similar problem. Our townspeople can see flights of homeless dogs and cats near shops, on heating mains, manholes, etc. Such animals rush on passers-by very often. Meeting similar flights in the streets, the townspeople feel fear for the health. Addressing to local authorities, people demand the acceptance of corresponding measures, but we do not think what the true origin of this problem is.

Speaking about this problem in this paper, I want to appeal to the citizens of our town and in particular to our local authorities to change this situation. In my opinion, it is necessary to begin building the nurseries, shelters for homeless animals, to start the program of their sterilization. But it is not enough to accept laws and bills to solve this problem; first of all we should begin with ourselves.

Literature:

1. 
   Большая энциклопедия Кирилла и Мефодия, 2003.
   
2. 
   Домашняя библиотека, 2004.
   
3. 
   Газета «Телеантенна», – № 15, 2006.
   
4. 
   www.animalrights.ru
   
5. 
   Знаменская И.В. Кошки и их происхождение. – СПб.: Изд-во «Тимошка», 2003.