Dogs and cats are not people. Different categories.Why is that such an important distinction though? For starters, people have not been selectively bred for different tasks and personalities. We also have opposable thumbs. More importantly, pets could not survive very long in the wild so turning them loose would be cruel.
Dogs and cats are not people. Different categories.Why is that such an important distinction though? For starters, people have not been selectively bred for different tasks and personalities. We also have opposable thumbs. More importantly, pets could not survive very long in the wild so turning them loose would be cruel. But he argues that being selectively bred with traits that don't allow them to survive in the wild is a form of enslavement. Because they can't surivive without us, but we can without them.
Dogs and cats are not people. Different categories.Why is that such an important distinction though? For starters, people have not been selectively bred for different tasks and personalities. We also have opposable thumbs. More importantly, pets could not survive very long in the wild so turning them loose would be cruel. But he argues that being selectively bred with traits that don't allow them to survive in the wild is a form of enslavement. Because they can't surivive without us, but we can without them. Then we have enslaved many species. What is his proposed remedy?
Thing is that they don’t recommend a solution. Obviously releasing them is certain death. But they also talk about not breeding them anymore.
I don’t understand how he can live with the guilt though, given when he says about pets.
Thing is that they don't recommend a solution. Obviously releasing them is certain death. But they also talk about not breeding them anymore. I don't understand how he can live with the guilt though, given when he says about pets.The cognitive dissonance must be strong in him. Frank, complaining about something without offering a solution is useless. I see it all the time, and on Facebook recently unfriended someone I've known for 32 years because all he does is complain and argue without making any statements about what he wants done.
Thing is that they don't recommend a solution. Obviously releasing them is certain death. But they also talk about not breeding them anymore. I don't understand how he can live with the guilt though, given when he says about pets.The cognitive dissonance must be strong in him. Frank, complaining about something without offering a solution is useless. I see it all the time, and on Facebook recently unfriended someone I've known for 32 years because all he does is complain and argue without making any statements about what he wants done. Well they talk about not breeding them anymore, but I think the whole slavery is largely dependent on how the dog sees it.
Well they talk about not breeding them anymore, but I think the whole slavery is largely dependent on how the dog sees it.Bingo! It's all in how you treat your pets. Give them love, food, shelter and companionship and they're happy. Some breeds also need jobs. We had a Chow/German Shepherd mix that was constantly on patrol. A worker left our gate open once and instead of running off our dog sat in the side yard watching the gate until we got home.
Well they talk about not breeding them anymore, but I think the whole slavery is largely dependent on how the dog sees it.Bingo! It's all in how you treat your pets. Give them love, food, shelter and companionship and they're happy. Some breeds also need jobs. We had a Chow/German Shepherd mix that was constantly on patrol. A worker left our gate open once and instead of running off our dog sat in the side yard watching the gate until we got home. To be honest, regardless of how we seem to see/want to label what they are and how we treat them, they seem fine as long as they have food, water, shelter and space.
That’s all most cats need. Dogs crave love and human companionship. The vast majority of them anyway.
That's all most cats need. Dogs crave love and human companionship. The vast majority of them anyway.Well the domestic ones anyway. I mean, the idea to release all domestic pets is tantamount to suicides
Cats kill millions of birds per year in the United States, too.
But I mean that solution is essentially the same as killing them.
But on the matter of slavery, I don’t even think dogs and cats have a concept of freedom and being enslaved. Those seem like human things.
Yes those are human things. The author is guilty of anthropomorphizing.
That’s all most cats need.
I can see the person who said this isn’t a dedicated cat person. Cats, who have spent their life around humans, also need companionship too. Some even crave attention from their human, as well as play/exercise, and often interactive play with their humans is the best.
I don’t know where this discussion began, but I’ll be sure to go back and read the whole thread.
Dogs and cats are not people. Different categories.
Depends on how you define people. Cats and dogs, IMO, are people in their own right. So are whales, dolphins, and chimps. They are people for their species. Humans are human people. We are all animals, no matter how one defines “people” or what the species is. Non-human people are not humans. Put another way, other animals are not the human animal. Chimps are not humans, but they are people in their own right, with feelings, an ability to learn, and a language of their own. Dolphins and Whales also have a language of their own too. Whales and dolphins, according to scientists, are the oceanic equivalent of humans and just as smart.
As for the original post, there are a few different schools on this: PETA, ALF, and the author of Animal Liberation school of thought (Animal Rights groups) and then there is the school of thought, with some overlap, of the Animal Welfare groups. Yes, they may seem one in the same, but the Rights groups are more radical than the Welfare groups. Ingrid Newkirk, head of PETA, is a radical. Betty White, a welfare activist, is not. The last group is just sees other animals as animals without feelings, rights, or whatever. The truth is, other animals do have feelings, wants, and desires, beyond sex and hunger. Elephants mourn their dead, as do chimps.
Should we breed them like we did slaves? I don’t think so, but I do think, though some disagree with me, we need to be very careful not to spay and neuter them to extinction. Some people don’t see such a thing as a danger, but the logic conclusion of going about spaying and neutering every single cat and dog we encounter, is that eventually, humans will do it to extinction. Humans are notorious for driving other animals into extinction. Humans are the worst animal on the planet earth. Yes, there maybe some exceptions, but as a whole, humans are the worst. Do I believe animals deserve rights? Yes, based on their species, domestication, and abilities. Some examples: 1. Not all pets need to be in the grocery store or Hellmart. For their safety and well-being, many need to stay home, while the human shops. However, dogs trained to care for humans with a disability or health issue have the right to enter any building with their human while working. 2. The majority of animals should not be locked in a cage. Example of exceptions would be rabid animals or violent human criminals. 3. All animals have the right to food, water, shelter and domesticated ones have the added rights to live free of abuse, have health care, and even “an education” appropriate to their species and human needs- such as seeing eye dog education, litter box training, or walking on leash. A leash is important to a dog’s safety when going out for a walk, especially in the city. Dogs and cats are to groups that for centuries have been domesticated and learned to live with humans. The majority would not know how to live in the wild and survive. Many would be dead within a day if we released them all into the wild. Others, like feral cats, have a much shorter lifespan (at best 5, maybe 7 years) than house cats (up to 20 at best) do. Indoor/outdoor cats have a shorter life than cats who are indoor 24/7/365. Cats who are outdoor only, but yet still have a human to care for them, can live for about 7 years on average. Street dogs have a shorter life than those cared for by humans. So there are advantages and disadvantages to having a human animal care for another species.
If anyone wants me to go deeper into the science or deeper in the difference between Radical/Rights and Welfare groups I’ll be very happy to, giving links and/or videos.