"Animal Cops: Houston" (2003) TV series 2003-????

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Release Date:

2003 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Documentary

Plot:

Animal Cops - Houston is the third Animal Planet series to follow the work of animal cruelty investigators...

Plot Keywords:

Society For The Prevention Of Cruelty To Animals

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Ernie Angerstein	...	HSPCA Cruelty Investigator
Jim Boller	...	HSPCA Director of Field Services
Barbara Christiansen	...	HSPCA Cruelty Investigator
Charles Janzten	...	HSPCA Assistant Chief Cruelty Investigator
Christine Kendrick	...	Deputy Constable, Harris County Precinct One Constable's Office
Sheila Kennedy	...	HSPCA Cruelty Investigator
Robert Leigh	...	Narrator (2004 -)
John Lurie	...	Narrator (2003-2004)
Max Mixson	...	HSPCA Senior Cruelty Investigator
Michele Santopietro	...	Voice / announcer (voice)
Deborah Turner	...	HSPCA Cruelty Investigator
Scott Wernick	...	HSPCA Cruelty Investigator (2004 -)

Runtime:

USA:60 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Norway:A (TV rating)

Filming Locations:

Harris County, Texas, USA

These people do good work!

I would say that we can never have too many shows like this, but that's not really true. If we have a show like this in every city it would start to look like TV networks just cashing in on the latest trend, and I think the work that the people are doing on the show is far too important to be trivialized like that. I have only seen a few episodes, but it is always uplifting to see people whose lives are centered on seeing that animals receive humane treatment in a very human world.

I have a feeling sometimes that people will watch the show and see something like several educated and professional people fretting over the well-being of a 24-hour old baby rabbit and think, "doesn't the world have enough rabbits already?" But the message of the show is that, especially in a society like America, humans are very much in control of the environment, particularly that of domesticated animals, and there are people who severely mistreat or neglect their animals and it's good to see that those animals are taken from those people, and as often as possible, the people are properly punished for their shabby behavior.

I also like the way the show is structured. We see an introduction to a problem with an animal or some animals being maltreated or tortured or just living in an inhumane condition, and then the investigators go to check it out. Rather than just telling one story at a time, they introduce each story and then move on to the next, coming back to the different stories throughout the show and ultimately ending with a conclusion, which is as happy as circumstances allow. Generally the animals are treated and adopted into happier families, although there are cases where they have to be put to sleep.

All my life I have had a very deep love of animals, so it's nice to see a show that is dedicated to their well being. The show is alternately heart wrenching and uplifting, and I like to think that even though there are only TV shows in a few cities, this kind of work is being done all over the country. Bravo!