Justifying Feeding Puppies to Snapping Turtles
When the news broke, it was shocking to say the least. An Idaho teacher fed a living, breathing puppy to snapping turtle as students looked on. What does that even mean? I first saw the story on KTVB:
A junior high school teacher is under investigation after he fed a puppy to a snapping turtle in front of students. It’s unclear if the dog was alive or dead when Crosland fed it to the turtle and although it happened after school hours, some students did witness the feeding.
Ok, so the way it reads, it looks pretty bad. The story went viral and it everyone wanted to voice an opinion on it. Personally, I don't think it was the right or moral thing to do. Man's best friend (dogs) are not just animals; they are companions, pets, family members and more. But like everything, there are two sides to this story. With that mindset, I wanted to try and justify why the teacher (Robert Crosland) wasn't crazy for feeding a living puppy to a snapping turtle.
- 1
Former students defend the teacher's actions.
There has been an outpouring of support for the teacher from students. Many students have gone so far as to say he was one of the most popular teachers at school. Jacee Hammonds, a former student, posted a statement on Facebook supporting the teacher's actions staying “Crosland loves animals….if you ever saw his classroom you’d know what I mean, I guarantee he didn’t just put the puppy in the water while it was conscious and let it get ripped apart while it was awake and alive.”
- 2
The puppy was ill.
One argument is that the puppy was terminally ill. Some students and parents argue that this was a hands-on way to teach the circle of life. I'm honestly not quite sure how the circle of life applies since puppies aren't naturally on natures dinner menu for snapping turtles. For reference, snapping turtles typically eat plants, insects, spiders, worms, fish, frogs, small turtles, snakes, birds, crayfish, and carrion.
- 3
The feeding took place after school hours.
While some of the details are still sketchy, most stories report that the feeding took place after school hours and not as part of the teacher's curriculum.
- 4
Dogs are Food In China
Believe it or not, I've seen people post this. A quick google search informed me that over 10 million dogs a year maybe consumed in China and South Korea. But, from my quick research, it looks to be more of a cultural thing rather than a science thing.