Should humans have to pass exams to get licence to own pets?

ANIMAL cruelty cases in court spark question: Should we first determine ability rather than inspect and prosecute?

An immature adult Doberman found locked inside a house at Gracemere, living amongst rubbish and his own faeces. He was emaciated along with being riddled with fleas, ticks and hookworms. Picture: RSPCA

IT IS something I don't understand and may never understand - how a human being can sit back and watch an animal starve to the point their bodies are skeletal and leave them medically untreated.

This week I sat in court listening to two animal cruelty cases. One is about three Dobermans locked at a Gracemere property without food and riddled with ticks, fleas and hookworms and the other story will be published next week.

The case where the guy left the dogs at the property and was too scared to go back and care for them as "people were out to get him" ... I'm at a loss for words. I could not imagine leaving my dog anywhere locked up, with no food, stuck climbing over rubbish and his own faeces.....

I could not imagine doing that to any living creature.

I freak out at the first sign of lack of eating or funny scratch marks on his little body.

I bought a kiddies' plastic pool and filled it with water because I was so worried about the little guy dehydrating or getting too hot in the high temperatures Rockhampton experiences. Obviously, I am at the other end of the scale of the type of pet owners I saw in court this week.

But after all the stories I've heard throughout my career, I have to wonder if it isn't time this country introduces a pet licence system where potential owners have to pass some sort of exam like they do to get a driver's licence.

Would it be, not only more humane, but more cost effective to management of the care of our furry and feathered companions than to be prosecuting, inspecting complaints and having to watch as some get so mistreated their behaviour issues are too bad to be rehomed?

Originally published as Should humans have to pass exams to get licence to own pets?