Truth, 2Hope4! This was dAnthro's (ooops can't remember the spelling, please forgive!) earlier point: The press is mighty good at tossing in details that may or may not be true but that will certainly enrage readers even further (i.e., clickbait). As testament to the power of the press in forming opinions, I invite you to read some of the hateful, shocking, and outrageous comments on KD's and JD's FB pages. It is sickening -- and these people state their love of family while in the same breath proposing all manner of torture and death. Why must our response to horror and inhumanity lead some people to lose their very own humanity? In making "demons" of others, in my opinion we become... less.
Does the animal "abuse" matter? If true, absolutely, either alone or as part of the story. But sometimes these little gifts from the press are about as helpful as shouting SQUIRREL at a dog park -- everybody's off on the chase, and nobody's paying attention to the bone right in front of them.
I'm glad that someone with knowledge and expertise recognizes that these animals are not abused, and probably not even abandoned. Rural pets, for good or for bad, roam further afield than their urban and suburban cousins. And thank you, 2Hope4, for all that you do for animals! (I have 6 rescue dogs and 8 rescue cats, I appreciate you and others like you.)
Long story short, I just think it's wise to consider just how much of the story we know to be true before we chase the next squirrel that comes along. (And we all know one will, and soon.)
JMO