Violence against animals is a generalization of animal abuse. Animal abuse refers to the mistreatment of animals by humans (Perdue, Abigail, & Randall, 77). This mistreatment can come in different forms. For example, inflicting pain and suffering on the victim animal or, in general, neglecting the animal in terms of protection and daily needs. Animal abuse is rampant in many countries and both governments and citizens turn a blind eye and are deaf to the situation. Animals have the disadvantage of having no say, much less the intelligence to protect them from the kind of abuse they receive from humans (El Massih, 169). In this sense, unfortunately, they are prey to malicious individuals who recklessly deprive them of the right to a good life, considering them living beings like their own. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Lately, Lebanon has been in the spotlight for cases involving animal abuse. Anti-animal abuse activists attribute this to the lack of sufficient legislation to dissuade people from committing such injustices on animals. Cases of animal abuse in this country range from poaching, to animal trafficking to general pet abandonment. Research conducted by Animals Lebanon, an anti-animal abuse organization, shows that Lebanon is like a safe haven for animal abusers. The current animal welfare law in Lebanon has maximum fines of less than fifteen dollars. Furthermore, research shows that this law has not been used even once in the span of twenty years. With such weak legislation against animal abuse, what is to stop malicious animal torturers from inflicting pain and suffering on animals within the Lebanese state? From this line of thought, therefore, it is evident that Lebanon as a country needs maximum intervention in cases involving animal abuse. Therefore, the question that needs to be answered in this case is; What are the primary causes of this threat to animals in Lebanon? Furthermore, what should be done to correct the situation in the country in question? One of the main causes of animal abuse in Lebanon is poverty. The state of poverty within the country leaves much to be desired. Current studies conducted by the Central Administration of Statistics of Lebanon show that, for every four Lebanese citizens, there are at least one or two people living below the poverty line. This therefore shows that a large percentage of Lebanese citizens do not have adequate work or means to make ends meet. In this line of thought, poverty leads to frustration of human beings and this frustration leads to crime as an alternative to daily bread. It is therefore not surprising that one might consider animal trafficking as a side job. Undoubtedly, the animal trafficking business in Lebanon is profitable. People captured endangered animals and sold them to the highest bidder. A common trend observed in Lebanon is the breeding of lion cubs as pets. These puppies were obviously captured from their natural habitats and torn away from their families. In most cases, the method of capturing and caring for the victim animal is never correct. Captured animals are sometimes starved or beaten mercilessly as a means of discouraging any form of misbehavior on their part. Considering this, it is inevitable that the animal will remain traumatized and disoriented due to the sudden change in environment andcomfort. One such example occurred in Lebanon in October 2016, when a group of poachers managed to capture a wolf. This news hit social media virally as people posted a video clearly showing them torturing the poor animal. The malicious group posted the wolf for sale at a price of $4,000. Fortunately, with the help of anti-animal abuse organizations, the police posed as a potential buyer of the animal and later caught the culprits. The wolf is currently in the care of a zoo, his wounds are treated and he is given daily food. If the country's state of poverty were better, individuals' standard of living would be sufficient to support their daily needs, leaving people without the need to resort to animal trafficking as a source of income. From a logical point of view, Lebanese citizens should also bear a good share of the blame for the ongoing animal abuse. Most Lebanese citizens simply have a general attitude of “don't care” what happens to the animals around them. The number of stray dogs, for example, grew so rampant that the government decided to mass shoot stray dogs (Beirne, Piers, & Caitlin, 97). Citizens most of the time ignore it as the carcasses are left on the streets. “Most of these stray dogs usually belong to families as pets, but probably due to lack of proper care from the owners they ran away.” A zookeeper says so in an interview with a local newspaper. Most owners of escaped animals do not even make a considerable effort to try to find their pet, thus demonstrating their lack of care towards their animals. Furthermore, during the months of June and September, many pet owners tend to go out on holiday, leaving their pets outside on the street or even on the balcony of their home. Without proper care of these animals, some sometimes starve, especially when their owners are gone for long periods of time. Other animals find themselves homeless and exposed to all sorts of harm on the streets. This then becomes an inhumane act on the part of citizens adding to the abuse of animals within the nation. It is the pet owner's duty to ensure that the pet is properly cared for on the eve of the holiday. Perhaps taking the animal to a suitable shelter that meets its needs in the meantime would be appropriate to ensure that the animal is not deprived of its needs. Citizens should remember that animals are also living beings who have the right to an adequate life, just like humans. If citizens became more attentive to animal welfare, animal abuse would be a thing of the past. Furthermore, the impulsive purchase of wild animals as pets by Lebanese citizens contributes to animal abuse in the long term. This is because they purchase the animal without adequate knowledge of how to care for it, especially considering the fact that they are trying to assimilate it into a human environment. In most cases, animals find themselves not receiving adequate diet or their daily needs, which brings overall distress to the animals. Somehow, the pet owner is unknowingly abusing the animal while trying to change its original habitat and move it out of its comfort zone. A good example is seen with owners of lion cubs. Once the cub grows older, the lion's daily needs change. If not met the lion could give rise to unwanted behaviors, whichthey could also be dangerous for the owners themselves. Furthermore, there is a lack of knowledge on how to properly care for pets within the household. A good example is the way people in Lebanon treat their dogs. In most cases, most Lebanese dog owners leave their dogs outside the house chained to the kennel all day. Furthermore, dogs do not receive regular baths and are therefore attacked by pests such as fleas and ticks. Without knowing it, these dogs are being abused by their owners. Dogs' health gradually worsens when exposed to such conditions. These dog owners should receive proper training on how to care for their pets. Knowledge of pet care goes a long way in ensuring the pet's comfort within the owner's family. Animals do not have the intelligence to determine what is considered right or wrong within society (El Massih, 169). In this regard, animals find themselves on the receiving end of humans' anger when they misbehave. Pets usually suffer from this as they are sometimes beaten mercilessly by some of their owners as a way to discourage bad behavior. The constant beating of these animals contributes to their emotional trauma as they may not understand why they are being beaten. What people need to understand is that animals act on impulsive instincts and impulses over which they have no particular control. In this regard, a cat, for example, should not be beaten or punished for taking a piece of meat from the table. For the cat, meat was an easily accessible food so it did not miss the opportunity to eat if it was given to it. This topic therefore goes hand in hand with that of stray animals. Animals mistreated in the home tend to escape, leaving them to loiter on the streets (Beirne, Piers, & Caitlin, 93). Wild animals smuggled into Lebanon are more prone to misbehavior considering their lack of training to live in a human environment. In this regard, when zookeepers sell them as pets, they usually suffer a lot of physical abuse before being domesticated by their owners. This is also a big factor contributing to animal abuse in Lebanon. Lebanon as a country is unfortunately plagued by both internal and external political conflicts. This is attributed to the unstable relationship between neighboring nations, Syria and Israel. Most of the country's resources have been channeled into remedying this problem, giving little priority to other ongoing issues in the country. The government's priority towards animal abuse is minimal considering this situation. This is greatly reflected in laws against animal abuse. From a general point of view, legislation relating to animal abuse issues is largely insufficient if not even neglected by the state in general (Linzey, 34). Neglect of animal abuse issues has consequently led to continued violence against animals, while perpetrators go unpunished. The lack of adequate deterrents against animal abuse will only increase the rate of this injustice, thus leaving animals in Lebanon without a safe haven. During dark times, there is always a silver lining to look at. Lebanon in this case has high hopes in trying to eradicate animal violence within the state. Much of this hope is fueled by the existence of anti-animal abuse organizations that have organized campaigns across the country to try to increaseawareness about the current state of animal abuse within the nation. A good example of such an organization is Animals Lebanon. This organization is at the forefront of efforts to increase animal welfare through the protection and promotion of legislation appropriate to the cause. Just recently, from 2011 to 2015, Animals Lebanon was on the verge of campaigning for a bill against animal abuse. They managed to get the law accepted and approved by the Council of Ministers. The law is made up of 11 chapters made up of 30 articles, which define and stipulate the conditions for those who deal with animals and for companies that do the same. Furthermore, the law provides sanctions for violation of established requirements for various establishments and individuals dealing with animal processing. The initiative for this law was made in collaboration with the country's Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Environment. All that remains is to approve the bill in Parliament. In an interview with the National Post, Jason Mier, executive director of Animals Lebanon, explained his pleasure at the ministries' collaboration. Furthermore, he underlined the need to tackle the problem at its root, saying: “This is where the law should intervene.” In this regard, therefore, with a coherent law put in place, Lebanon has a great chance of putting a firm stop to violence against animals. Other citizens have gone to great lengths to create sanctuary institutions for rescued animals. With the number of stray animals and poached wild animals rising every day on Lebanese streets, Hesayne, vice president of a shelter near Beirut, left her career to care for endangered animals in Lebanon. His shelter is home to around 250 animals who have been saved from various tragedies and are given a second chance at a proper life. According to an interview with Cable News Network, Hesayne explains that his goal is to save abused and homeless animals. Hesayne works with the organization Beirut for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (BETA). Together, BETA has managed to care for more than a thousand animals since its founding in 2004. Like Animals Lebanon, BETA has also made significant strides in attempting to institute laws against animal abuse within the country. He has currently lobbied the Lebanese government to sign the CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) agreement. Lebanon as a country has not yet signed the agreement, although mechanisms are being put in place to add the nation as a signatory. The CITES agreement would certainly go a long way in reducing wildlife smuggling into Lebanon. Furthermore, wildlife poaching would be a heavily sanctioned crime and would therefore act as a deterrent to those who capture and traffic animals within the country. Additionally, BETA organized an exercise with a local charity for disabled children. The exercise involves introducing pets to disabled children. This action aimed to increase the self-confidence of young patients. In a sense, the organization kills two birds with one stone by caring for the sick and abused animals. Both mentioned cases of anti-animal abuse activists trying to change the situation show a glimmer of hope for the current state of Lebanon. Therefore, there are several recommendations that the government and citizens should consider to counter the threat in question. First, the government should keep animal abuse as a top priority in government affairs. Just like the life of human beings is..