For a public service announcement.
A tip for cruel people: Please, when you hit an animal with your car, STOP! Go back, make sure it's dead. Even if you don't care about the poor animal's suffering, think about the human accidents that animal will cause as, in it's shock and agony, it circles in the road. At least make the effort to call 911 on that cell phone you were blabbing on when you struck the animal. The police can come out to dispatch the poor creature. (And yes, there are times when you can't stop–like when you're on a 70 MPH highway, but if you have your phone, CALL!)
A tip for everyone who drives: carry a blanket in your trunk. Not only is it nice to have in the event that you get stuck someplace cold, but having a blanket for animal and human accidents is handy. People go into shock. Keep them warm. For animals, the blanket will help you gather the animal up to get it to the vet. I keep gloves, a blanket, and an EMT kit in my car. I have gathered injured animals in my blanket and delivered them to the nearest veterinarians. I have stopped BRIDGE TRAFFIC to capture a car-struck duck. Most vets will take in an animal you bring in that isn't yours, and they will either euthanize or treat with no cost to you. Big thanks to all the dedicated veterinarian out there.
Sorry to hijack the Christmas cheer, but back to being merry now. Happy holidays to everyone (excludes cruel people who run over animals and leave me to deal with the suffering.) Oh, was that less than cheery? 
I'll go sing some carols on blogs now..
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That’s terrible, Larissa!!! I feel the same as you about people who are cruel to animals
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Ditto on keeping a blanket in your car. I was on my way home from work late one night, and there had been a wreck on the highway a mile or so down the highway from my neighborhood. It was cold, in the 20’s, and the cops were stopping every vehicle and asking for blankets because they had run out of blankets and the ambulances were still 15 minutes away.
by Liz
on December 19th, 2006 at 2:23 pm
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A pox on the idiot on the cell phone who hit the animal.
Poor baby 
My daughter’s a senior in high school and has been planning on a career as a veterinarian since she was a little kid. I can’t wait since we have 5 dogs and she’ll be able to take care of them. hehehe.
Her boyfriend just recently rescued a pitbull/Shar Pei mix from a ditch during our cold/snow/ice snap a few weeks ago. He kept her. Cutest little thing, about 8 weeks old. Already bigger than my fully adult dachsund/maltese mixes. *snort*
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Those people deserve every bit of coal they find in their stockings. Bastards.
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So depressing that you had to deal with that but so lucky you were the one close by. But … Here is why stopping on a highway to rescue an injured animal is a bad idea. (recent)
Girl, 6, killed helping turtle ~ http://www.lakejacksonturtles.org/emily.htm
Woman Struck By Car While Helping Injured Dog ~ http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16062748/
And sometimes? They are smart enough to get to a doctor all on their own:
The Darndest, Doggone Dog
BECKLEY, W.Va. - It was canine intuition when an injured black Labrador retriever did a doggone good job of getting medical attention.
The dog, apparently struck by a car on July 4, found his way to Beckley Appalachian Regional Hospital, hobbled through the sliding glass doors and waited for assistance in the hallway.
“It’s the darndest thing,” said Ted Weigel, marketing director at Beckley. “The dog limped in and laid down where people could see it. It seemed to know exactly where to go for help.”
Hospital workers gave the dog water, called a veterinarian and offered to pay the bill.
“There’s no way they were going to put an injured animal back on the street,” Weigel said.
Dr. Roger Ward treated the animal, and the vet said the canine suffered road burns, scrapes and an infected wound on his leg.
The 7-year-old male dog has been a model patient, Ward said.
“He is incredibly calm and patient,” Ward said. “He has a wonderful temperament. He’s very gentle and he’s been easy to treat.”
Ward and hospital officials are searching for the dog’s owner.
~ http://www.cbsnews.com/stories…
by FerfeLaBat
on December 20th, 2006 at 2:18 pm
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Bonnie, I’m with you. I have NO tolerance for animal cruelty. None. People who are intentionally cruel to animals have it in them to be cruel to humans. I don’t get why people don’t understand the connection.
Liz, exactly! I can’t count how many times my blanket has come in handy–for both humans and animals. I use a cheapie I can throw away or leave at the scene!
LOL, Jaci! Good luck to your daughter!
Agreed, Tori!
Cool story on the dog who found a vet, FerfeLaBat! 
And yeah, like I said, there are times that stopping isn’t prudent, but nearly everyone these days has a cell phone, and there’s no reason for not calling the police or animal control. And let’s not even start on the people who hit animals on purpose! I swear, if I EVER caught up with one of them…well, it wouldn’t be pretty.
by Larissa
on December 20th, 2006 at 2:49 pm
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Animals DO get even. DH and I watched these two guys try to shoo two rather large gators off the road once. Gators are usually slow but if you are patient they eventually get out of the way. They speed up when pissed. Could have ended in tragedy but sadly it did not. The guys made it back into their car and decided to wait the gators out. Fifteen minutes later? We were all on our way again.
I have the various animal rescue groups in the Keys on my cell phone list. We have called for a heron, a racoon, a green finch, a Pelican and a dog. The land crab was on it’s own.
Maybe the driver did not realize they hit something? Small animals vs SUV wouldn’t make much of a dent.
I thought I hit a cat once and completely freaked. It ran in front of my headlights but I didn’t feel a thump. Still. I stopped. That cat and I had a come to jesus talk about cat vs car logistics and then we found her owner and had another cat care discussion. I am not popular in my neighborhood for these kinds of activities. It’s not that I think cats should stay inside - just stupid cats. Owner did not wish to accept that her cat was IQ deficient.
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I’ve honestly never seen an animal that was merely injured by the side of the road. Funny once I think about it.
by Lydia
on January 4th, 2007 at 1:51 pm
