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So, There's This Squirrel... Who Met a Car... -Ethics-

MindGateMindGate United States Veteran
edited April 2011 in Philosophy
So, there was a squirrel who got ran over yesterday. Me and Sara watched it happen. Of course, we thought it was dead when it was just laying on the road not moving. We were sad, but not too bothered because stuff like this happens all the time ... until we look over and see the squirrel crawling away. We're both like :eek: and go over to it.

The entire lower half of the squirrel is smashed, but it is still alive and crawling away with its two front legs. We call the vet, and there is not answer. We'd assume the vet would euthanize it instead of leaving it there to starve, or viscously mauled by some passerby animal. Though, my mom says JUST LEEVE IT THAR. HEY LOOK, THERE GOES ONE OF HIS FRIENS, MR. SQUIRREL. DON'T WORRY.

So, we just left it alone, knowing mom was off in her own little world... until the thought of the squirrel being in terrible pain, starving, and such just ate away at us. So... Sara got a big rock and killed it. Now I feel bad. An hour later the vet calls and says, "You can drop the squirrel off. We'll take care of it if we can, or we'll euthanize it." Could the vest really have fixed AN ENTIRE HALF OF A BODY? How would it take a poo? How would it walk? Its tail was destroyed. It was in terrible pain.

Was the mercy killing called for? What would Buddha have done? What about you?

Comments

  • zidanguszidangus Veteran
    edited April 2011
    Here is one interpretation, decide yourself if you agree with what it says.

    http://www.purifymind.com/MercyKilling.htm

    there are also a lot of posts on a very similar thread called "mercy killing" however it was closed. Still there are some good posts on it for both sides of the debate.

    http://newbuddhist.com/discussion/10176/mercy-killing#Item_81

    Metta to all sentient beings
  • SpockSpock
    It would have been a sad squirrel indeed without its nuts.

    I saw a pheasant at the side if the road in the same situation. Wasn't pleasant putting it out of its suffering but death was inevitably close anyway.
  • CinorjerCinorjer Veteran
    I'm curious, how would you have killed the squirrel? Picked up a rock and pounded its head in? Found a bucket of water and held it under? Unless you carry a gun or knife around and know how to use them, you had no way to give it a quick, relatively painless death, anyway.

    You do what you can. Since I used to hunt squirrel as a teenager back in the hills (and yes, that was a big help with our food budget), I'd take the knife from my truck and give it a cleaner death, because I've done it many times before when it wasn't a clean shot. But, I don't expect city people to do the same. There's a million animals killed by cars each year, and few of them were quick, clean deaths.



  • JeffreyJeffrey Veteran
    edited April 2011
    Probably some of the pain of the whole situation is transfering onto 'the rock action'. Remember that you didn't cause the squirrel to be in such pain. You didn't cause the squirrels condition. I believe in the afterlife, so I might not have done that because the squirrel might become mentally disturbed in a deep way that a human had hit it with a rock. In a deep way that caused it to be angry and have a bad rebirth. But that is hindsite and I don't believe you believe in rebirth.
    Second, the squirrel could have been equally distressed by the car incident anyhow.

    What the squirrel needed was to let go and think of all the squirrels in the earth and sky :) Its good it is no longer in pain.

    The most important thing for your practice is that you had a good intention which is compassionate.

    "If I do not actually exchange my happiness
    For the sufferings of others,
    I shall not attain the state of Buddhahood
    And even in cyclic existence I shall have no joy."

    Shantideva
  • compassionate_warriorcompassionate_warrior Veteran
    The vet probably would've ended up euthanizing it. They're pros at that, we aren't.
    One thing to keep in mind is that squirrels and other wildlife carry diseases and parasites that can spread to the humans that handle them, whether or not they bite you. Always handle such animals with gloves, and call an expert, which you did. If you want more info about this, call the vet back, or your local wild animal rescue service.
  • fivebellsfivebells Veteran
    Been in that situation, except it was a skunk and whoever killed it would need to carry the body a mile or so on foot to dispose of it responsibly, so the relevant authorities didn't want to deal. Brained it to death with a rock. It died on the third blow. The memory of the smell affected the taste of food for several days after.
  • seeker242seeker242 Zen Florida, USA Veteran
    edited April 2011
    So, there was a squirrel who got ran over yesterday. Me and Sara watched it happen. Of course, we thought it was dead when it was just laying on the road not moving. We were sad, but not too bothered because stuff like this happens all the time ... until we look over and see the squirrel crawling away. We're both like :eek: and go over to it.

    The entire lower half of the squirrel is smashed, but it is still alive and crawling away with its two front legs. We call the vet, and there is not answer. We'd assume the vet would euthanize it instead of leaving it there to starve, or viscously mauled by some passerby animal. Though, my mom says JUST LEEVE IT THAR. HEY LOOK, THERE GOES ONE OF HIS FRIENS, MR. SQUIRREL. DON'T WORRY.

    So, we just left it alone, knowing mom was off in her own little world... until the thought of the squirrel being in terrible pain, starving, and such just ate away at us. So... Sara got a big rock and killed it. Now I feel bad. An hour later the vet calls and says, "You can drop the squirrel off. We'll take care of it if we can, or we'll euthanize it." Could the vest really have fixed AN ENTIRE HALF OF A BODY? How would it take a poo? How would it walk? Its tail was destroyed. It was in terrible pain.

    Was the mercy killing called for? What would Buddha have done? What about you?
    The vet definitely would have euthanized the squirrel. There is absolutely no way they would have been able to fix it after such injuries, if the entire back half of it was run over by a car. Even if you brought it to a wildlife rescue, they still would have euthanized it. I found a dog once that was hit by a car, it had broken legs and a broken pelvis. The vet enthanized it, behind my back while I was not looking and then tried to tell me that "Oh, wee sorry,it must have died from the injuries. The things is I saw them euthanize it, they just didn't know I saw them, so I knew they were lying. But I didn't make a fuss, whats done is done and that can't be changed.

  • genkakugenkaku Northampton, Mass. U.S.A. Veteran
    My vote: Sara did the right thing.
  • sndymornsndymorn Veteran
    Thirty years ago I did the same thing with a cat in the same situation.
    I believe i did the compassionate thing but I regret, to this day, having to do it.
  • ZaylZayl Veteran
    Yes you did the right thing. And don't worry a rock is a pretty good way to end a small rodent without causing it any pain, just make sure it is of significant weight and smash the skull. You also could have just stomped on it. Not very pleasant thoughts but both methods are quick and painless.
  • MindGateMindGate United States Veteran
    No, she didn't beat its head in! My god. You people are silly. It was a huge cement block that killed it instantly.
  • cazcaz Veteran United Kingdom Veteran
    Often the guys at our centre will not kill them even if they are in terrible pain instead they always carry a small image of Buddha about and if by chance met a dying animal they place it so the animal can see it thus it imprints them with positive potential that they may enter into dharma in a future life, There is a story of Maudgalyanaputra whom gained his fortunate rebirth from his previous life as a whale when upon his death heard a mantra recited by sailors so it is certain that the best way to benifit the dying is to imprint them this way.
  • MindGateMindGate United States Veteran
    I said, "I wish you a positive rebirth, friend" and then recited the medicine Buddha mantra before... the rock.
  • Inji-gyoInji-gyo
    I would have let it live- here is my take.

    YOU do not know the fate of the squirrel,
    YOU do not control the life of the squirrel,
    unless of course you decide to kill it. Then you know it will die, and you control when.

    Is life so precious that it is worth living despite suffering? (suffering is the nature of life)
    what degree of suffering warrants the taking of life?


    It is a tricky situation, live and learn.
  • personperson Don't believe everything you think The liminal space Veteran
    Theres a story of one of the Buddha's previous lives where he was a captain of a ship. He found out one of the crew was planning on killing everyone on board, so he decided to take on the negative karma from killing this one guy in order to save the lives of the rest of the crew.

    Maybe this is intended to show that in certain situations, with the right intent, a normally negative action can become more postive.

    I don't generally care for these Jakata Tales, most of them intend to make some point but they usually have glaring holes like why couldn't the Buddha just tie the guy up until they made land.
  • sndymornsndymorn Veteran
    Theres a story of one of the Buddha's previous lives where he was a captain of a ship. He found out one of the crew was planning on killing everyone on board, so he decided to take on the negative karma from killing this one guy in order to save the lives of the rest of the crew.

    Maybe this is intended to show that in certain situations, with the right intent, a normally negative action can become more postive.

    I don't generally care for these Jakata Tales, most of them intend to make some point but they usually have glaring holes like why couldn't the Buddha just tie the guy up until they made land.
    This sounds like a metaphor for the " ship of state." We ( the ship) , that is society, give responsibility to dispose of criminals to the government (the captain). To untie him at the end of the voyage would be to set a murderer loose on the general public.
    IMO

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