I eat meat and I have no illusions about where it comes from. Like it or not, we are a carnivorous species and the meat industry has grown out of a real necessity. But that is not what this post is about. I think intentional animal cruelty, such as encountered and described by Sara Ford is just unforgivable. Yes, it is too often that people take on pets without realizing the full extent of the burden they take on, but one has to take responsibility for one's actions. As the absolute last resort, if you are not able to take good care of a pet, you should make damn sure you arrange for someone else that can.
What Sara encoutered may, of course, have been even worse - a prank someone played on the pets and their owners by abducting and stranding the animals. I can only hope that there is a way to criminally punish such behavior (perhaps as theft? cruelty to animals?).