All Creatures Great And Small
By Shell
An Animal Rights Poem from All-Creatures.org

All Creatures Great And Small
By Shell

Precious are all creatures great and small
One of God's little mysteries.
The glorious colors of the winged ones
And the swimmers of the sea
Are a beautiful and wondrous thing to me.

Then why all the suffering and inhumanity?
Are we really superior or just arrogant?
There's an easier way, of that I'm sure.
Isn't there enough pain without adding more?

Think about dolphins doing tricks and confined to a pool
They once swam free, it's really so cruel.
Hunters with guns and arrows out for the "sport"
I'd much rather see the sports left on the court.
And foxes in leg traps for fur on your back
It's really not fair that they can't attack.

And the poor rabbit's eyes bleeding for naught
I'm only sorry that they got caught.
Horses and greyhounds running to their death
Running and panting until their last breath.
Do you really feel that plate of veal
Is worth the calf's life they surely did steal?

More questions than there are answers
One can only try to make things better
Do what you can to end all the suffering
It certainly can't hurt to be a little more loving.

Stop for a moment and look in their eyes
Do they not feel pain? If they could, would they cry?
What do they think when they see the end coming?
Do they not fear death? Do they not love?

There was a time when they roamed the Earth free
Living in peace, all God's creatures together in harmony.
"Herb-bearing seeds and fruit of the trees I give you to eat"
Said the Lord God in the beginning from Heaven above.