Animal well-being specialists have actually safeguarded an episode of The Archers including a dog being put down after it triggered anger amongst distressed listeners.
On Friday in the Radio 4 drama embeded in Ambridge, farmer supervisor Stella Pryor was informed by the veterinarian that her greyhound Weaver might not be saved after it had actually been struck by a trailer.
In a psychological scene, as the veterinarian prepares to euthanise, Stella conveniences the greyhound, stating: “Weaver, it’s only me.”
Told to keep talking with him, she includes: “Hello boy. Poor old thing. So quiet. When I first met you, you know, you weren’t quiet at all. Could hear you barking through two doors.”
Eventually, the veterinarian disrupts her: “Stella, it’s all right now, Weaver can’t hear you anymore.”
The episode provoked a reaction, with some listeners calling the plot gratuitously morbid.
‘Gratuitously distressing’
One fan, Jane Dix, composed on Facebook: “Tonight’s episode was so upsetting – I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s unhappy with this gratuitously distressing storyline. That scene at the vets was really not necessary.”
Susan Moorse composed: “With everything else that’s going on at the moment and with so many plotlines left hanging in the air, the death of Weaver seems like an unnecessary string that served absolutely no purpose.”
But Tracy Genever, head of the Blue Cross’s animal well-being requirements, which uses a family pet bereavement service, said the story was well-handled and crucial to assisting individuals handle the loss of a family pet in reality.
She said: “Animals don’t always die of old age, sometimes they die of an injury like Weaver did and there’s a big sense of loss and shock when it happens quickly.
“To hear how fictional characters are coming to terms with it can help us too sometimes.”
On whether handling such a delicate topic so raw and viscerally in fiction may be terrible to kids who may have been listening with their moms and dads as the program was transmitted on Friday afternoon, Ms Genever said it was “important we talk to children straight”.
“We don’t want to be telling children he’s gone away or – saying he’s been put to sleep can make some children frightened about going to sleep. So we have to make sure we talk really sensitively to children about what’s happened but make it clear to them what’s happened.”
‘Real-life experiences’
A representative for the RSPCA informed the Telegraph: “We know that the difficult decision to put a beloved pet to sleep is a distressing time that many pet owners will have experienced firsthand.
“Tackling such issues in a fictional format could help clarify and demystify a difficult subject if handled sensitively. However, the decision to include a sensitive subject and the way that issue is treated and depicted is ultimately down to the individual programme maker’s discretion, as they will know their audience best.”
Some listeners to the long-running program required to Facebook to express comparable beliefs, stating it was ideal that real-life styles are shown in fiction while praising the program for its classy handling of Weaver’s death.
The BBC said: “Whilst we understand some listeners may have found the death of Weaver upsetting, we take great care to approach these stories sensitively and this touching 90-second scene was carefully written and reflected many real-life experiences.”
