At the bottom of this depravity is the lack of sympathy and empathy present in most individuals. According to the broken windows theory, something that seems to be well cared for makes people to respect it. In the same vein, a society that is incapable of protecting its animals has little compassion even for their fellow human beings and in such societies, cases of murder are prevalent as well as other significant crimes. I wonder how these gross injustices can happen under the watchful eye of law enforcement agencies since animals are protected by law. These people should be arrested and deterrent sentences issued. In my country, the organisations involved with care and protection of animals are on the frontline for their advocacy with regard to animal rights especially donkeys which are some of the most mistreated animals on earth. Its interesting that what you have expounded on points to inversion of roles with people protecting animals. I saw a story of a certain area in China where people are spending sleepless nights guarding their dogs which are a form of delicacy there. Animal rights is an area that is yet to be scratched on the surface judging by the injustices committed against them. Shed a tear today for a suffering pet.