Governments, and Judges, please pay attention. Animal abuse is on the increase. People who abuse animals are not being punished properly for their crimes against these helpless, innocent beings. It doesn't matter if a person is having a bad day, has fallen on hard times, is an addict, is a sadist or whatever, it is not ok to hurt or injure an animal. It is not ok to abuse an animal in any way. Animal abuse is not normal behaviour and it is connected to other types of abuse also. So many people want this to be recognised and dealt with properly. Enough is enough. Time to punish the offenders properly. Laws need to be made/changed to make animals safer, and harsher sentences need to be handed out to offenders.