Palin Angers Animal Rights Groups With Trig Photo

A new Facebook post by Sarah Palin has raised the ire of animal rights groups because it shows 6-year-old Trig Palin standing on the family dog, reports Politico. Palin was making the case that her son, who has Down syndrome, had provided a lesson in determination and ingenuity. Her post:

• “May 2015 see every stumbling block turned into a stepping stone on the path forward. Trig just reminded me. He, determined to help wash dishes with an oblivious mama not acknowledging his signs for ‘up!’, found me and a lazy dog blocking his way. He made his stepping stone.”

Reaction is all over the map. From the mildly disapproving: “Although perhaps a seemingly innocent post on Facebook by Palin, a child standing on a dog is not safe for either the child or the dog," says Animal Welfare Institute President Cathy Liss. To the very disapproving: “PETA, along with everyone else, is used to the hard-hearted, seeming obliviousness of this bizarrely callous woman,” says President Ingrid Newkirk. To the critics of the critics: “Trig is a great problem solver … and to all you ‘haters’ out there spewing your venom … this is a little boy with his dog who is doing nothing wrong!" writes one supporter, as noted by the Guardian. (More Sarah Palin stories.)