You're driving along and you spot an injured cat by the side of the road.
It lifts its head and looks at you, so you know it's still alive.
What do you do? a.
Keep driving.
It's not your cat, so you don't feel any obligation to help it.
b.
You stop to see how bad it is, but it looks pretty serious, so you apologize and get back in your car because there's nothing you can do.
c.
You stop and see the cat is seriously injured, so you wrap him in whatever you have and go to the nearest veterinary clinic.
If you answered A or B, you are pretty heartless.
The sad thing is, the cat will die, and probably in great pain.
But you don't care, so you keep moving.
If you answered C, then you are one of those rare people who cares about animals and is willing to do what you can to ease or end their suffering.
It might mean a humane euthanasia at the nearest vet office, or it could mean the cat still has a chance.
But what if it's a costly procedure? The next step is usually the shocking discovery that our society has mixed messages about responsibility.
Whoever brings the injured cat in to the vet's office is going to be considered its owner and will be charged accordingly.
Can you afford it? Should you pay? If not you, then who? While there are stories about pets who got loose and a kind Samaritan took care of them until the owner could be found, it's not that common.
More often, pets are killed on the road every day and no one blinks an eye.
Most of them do not die instantly, but suffer horribly as death finally claims them.
For the lucky ones who are rescued by kind people, they may or may not make it, but their futures are still uncertain.
Who will take them? Who will care? Most of them are, after all, "just" strays.
And what about the kind driver who brought him in? How do they feel when they get the bill? Some people are willing to do whatever it takes, because they are the rare ones who do understand responsibility.
Humans have caused the problem, and humans should be the ones to either solve it or handle the outcomes.
It is we who have built all the roads and fast vehicles.
Animals don't understand these concepts.
It is we who have created excess populations of cats and dogs, by allowing over-breeding and by cruel abandonment, and they often end up wandering in unfamiliar areas and don't understand how to cross the highway safely, or how to defend themselves from local predators.
It's absolutely critical that we humans fix the imbalance.
For the big picture, let's get on the ball with spay/neuter programs and support the shelter and rescue organizations.
For the immediate situation, take the injured cat to a vet, leave some money as a deposit, and agree to make payments.
Or, have the poor thing humanely euthanized.
For the intermediate solution, get in touch with a rescue or shelter facility.
Sometimes they can take the injured animal (if it's not too far gone), and if they are an established shelter, they may have some donated funds for these situations.
It's worth asking.
Some shelters even have veterinarians on staff.
However, and more usually, they may have a working agreement with a local vet.
The one thing I could never do is keep driving and ignore the suffering.