Just for the record, I like most animals. Take dogs, for example. I’ve been married for 41 years. The non-dog times of our marriage are few and far between.

When we were first married, we agreed that we’d hold off on getting a dog for a while. One Saturday, soon after the agreement, Diane went “North” to do some shopping. When she arrived home, I was soaking in the bathtub after doing yard work.

I heard the door open and then heard the skittering of claws on the hard floor. The next thing I knew, a thirsty dog had paws over the edge of the tub and was lapping up water.

That dog, Ginger, from the Humane Society, was with us for quite a few years. She slept on the bed with us much of the time. She died the night the movie “All Dogs Go to Heaven” premiered nationally.

Some years later, I got Diane back. During one of the summers she was working on her master’s degree in Vermont, the kids and I took in a stray, young cat. When Diane got home, she insisted that Gypsy become a de-clawed house cat. She slept on the bed with us for about 18 years before her “All Cats Go to Heaven” time arrived.

Of course, I grew up in a farm family and animals were part of life. I like animals. Although, I didn’t go to the extreme that my brother did who, for a time, had a pet skunk in a rabbit pen, not to mention a smallish rattlesnake in a parakeet cage.

I tell you all of this to establish that I have feelings for animals. I don’t like seeing or hearing of them being mistreated. It seems like there’s constantly a story in the news about some incident of animal cruelty.

Enter the case of “Happy the Elephant.” Happy is an Asian elephant in the Bronx Zoo in New York. About 50 years ago, seven elephants were brought to the USA from Thailand. They were named after the Seven Dwarves from the Snow White story. Two of those young elephants, Grumpy and Happy, ended up at the Bronx Zoo in 1977.

Long story short, Grumpy was injured by other elephants and didn’t recover. She had to be “put down.” Happy had other unsuccessful attempts at socialization with other elephants. Happy has been living a mostly elephant-free life since 2006.

Animal rights groups have been putting pressure on the zoo for years attempting to free Happy into an elephant sanctuary. Zoo officials believe that a transfer would be risky for Happy, who has bonds with her keepers and is said to be well adjusted to the zoo.

Here’s where I think things get just a bit strange. There has been a legal battle going on involving a writ of habeas corpus. The Nonhuman Rights Project filed the lawsuit putting forth that Happy is being detained by the zoo illegally, and due to her “personhood,” she should be released. The Project has tried in the past to have chimpanzees declared “legal persons.” So far, none of the attempts have been successful.

In the meantime, I think some of my dogs over the years have been kept in captivity against their will. We went through a couple of beloved Boxers who, if they found a door open, would make a break for it.

Archer, the Sheltie who is “incarcerated” with us now, has become “institutionalized.” He doesn’t even seek “parole.” He’s happy to be imprisoned – as long as he can socialize a little with the “guards.”

I believe that most Sanpete animals are cared for well. Pets are pampered by their caretakers to the extent that I’m able to observe. Some dogs and cats I know of are taken care of better than some kids around Sanpete.

I think the farm animals are cared for as well. Unlike pets, some of them wind up on my plate when I eat steak. Some are on the table at Thanksgiving and other occasions. I hope that the designation of “personhood” for animals doesn’t become law for beef cattle and turkeys. I’d hate to be guilty of cannibalism. … Merrill