Johnny Depp’s pampered pooches highlight the growing inequalities in society
An animal welfare expert says Johnny Depp’s privileged pooches being chauffeured around the world on private jets is evidence of a two-tiered class system in the dog world.
After the world economic crash of 2008, brought about by greedy banks and poor government oversight, the divide between rich and poor has widened. Inequality in society has become a noticeable issue leading to protest from the have nots. We are in a rebellious mood.
The super-wealthy were unaffected by the crash. They found ways to make money out of it, hence the increased polarisation between rich and poor. Plus ça change as the French say.
Where there is a gulf between rich and poor people, there is the same inequality between companion animals and the Johnny Depp story highlights this.
Johnny Depp must have known about the strict Australian rules governing the importation of anything into the country. Australians are incredibly (and admirably) strict on what can be brought into their country. He appears to have decided to ignore the rules and try and get away with it. Now he will fly his dogs back to California, quite possibly in his private jet.
This makes me think of the millions of cats and dogs living with poor and sadly uneducated people who are negligent towards, and sometimes abuse, their companion animals. It is just pure bad luck these cats and dogs ended up where they did.
High profile companion animal caretakers/guardians arguably have a role to play in improving animal welfare. They are in the privileged position, by dint of their talent and effort, or simply via inherited wealth and opportunity, to make a major contribution to animal welfare.
I like Johnny Depp as a performer but he seems to have acted selfishly in riding roughshod over Australian regulations. As he obviously likes dogs a lot and I hope, therefore, animals in general, let’s see him try and make a difference in animal welfare. This is a nice opportunity to get the ball rolling.
There is another aspect to the wealthy companion animal phenomenon, which is dubious. They are often used by wealthy celebrities to enhance their image. This is not the way to improve animal welfare as the animals are being used as an accessory. It devalues animals.
Did you find this article useful and interesting? Can it be improved? Please tell me in a comment. I am always keen to improve the site for animal welfare and reader enjoyment.