Animals are living beings too, ok?!
It absolutely riles me when I see parents brainwash their kids into thinking that animals are bad/dirty/useless/dangerous/etc. just coz they have an aversion towards animals or just coz they think animals are not worth anything just coz, well, they're animals and not humans.
Mom to kid : Eeeeeee!! Dun go near that dog! Afterwards it bites u, then u know!
Mom to kid : Don't u dare touch that cat! It's dirty, u'll catch a disease!
It's quite depressing (and alarming) when parents instil that FEAR of animals in their kids. How are u gonna teach ur kid compassion when u won't even let the kid be kind to animals??? Animals are living beings too, and they have just as much right to this planet as we humans do. What right does anyone have to think that animals are not worthy of any space on Earth just coz they dun have the mental capacity that we do??? Heck, u know wat, sometimes (ok, a lot of times), I'd rather deal with animals than with humans coz at least, I know that my cats won't manipulate me or make me feel bad. All they want is a head scratch or belly rub or food. Plain and simple.
Anyway, back to parents + kids + animals. How do u justify that it's ok to be kind to ur fellow humans but not to spare a thought for that helpless kitten with a broken leg, hobbling outside ur door? Is there a difference? Both are living, breathing beings, are they not? Both have the capability to feel pain, do they not? I will never, in my life, understand what's the difference between being kind to my species and not to others. If u really wanna get down to it, I think that some of the things that humans do are so vile that even animals would loathe us for it, if they knew.
I find it quite scary to thing that right at this moment, out there, there're tons of parents like this, moulding lil' juniors of themselves to loathe and fear animals. I shudder to think of how we're gonna coexist with the animal species when some of us can't even stand the thought of having an animal near us.
For me, one of the ways to size up a person is to see how s/he reacts to animals (note that I say it's ONE of the ways, and not the ONLY way). It's not entirely fool-proof but it does give me a different aspect of a person. A person can be oh-so-nice to me or to other ppl, but put them in the same room with a cat or a dog and sometimes, u'll see a totally different person altogether. And I'm not talking abt those who have zoophobia. I'm not saying that ppl who dun like animals are bad and oh, I dun expect every single person to be like me and mush and gush over every single animal! I can accept the fact that some ppl just dun like animals, just like how I just dun like some ppl (i.e. humans). BUT even if one doesn't like animals, they can still respect them and not wish/do anything to harm them.
I'm very thankful for the fact that my parents respect and love animals, and taught me to do the same. I've grown up around animals (dogs, mostly) all my life and I've come to learn to love not only dogs, but all the animal species (well, I haven't had any experience with reptiles and a lot of other animals but I think I can handle them. Just teach me how! :p) I get a warm fuzzy feeling when I see my family interact with my cats, when my parents talk to them and treat them like part of the family. And each time, I thank God that my parents didn't raise me up to fear animals.
And I know for a fact that, if ever I have any kids of my own, I'm definitely gonna teach them the same respect and love for animals as I've been taught. No kid of mine is ever gonna fear animals or be cruel to them.
To quote several well-known figures on the subject:
Mom to kid : Eeeeeee!! Dun go near that dog! Afterwards it bites u, then u know!
Mom to kid : Don't u dare touch that cat! It's dirty, u'll catch a disease!
It's quite depressing (and alarming) when parents instil that FEAR of animals in their kids. How are u gonna teach ur kid compassion when u won't even let the kid be kind to animals??? Animals are living beings too, and they have just as much right to this planet as we humans do. What right does anyone have to think that animals are not worthy of any space on Earth just coz they dun have the mental capacity that we do??? Heck, u know wat, sometimes (ok, a lot of times), I'd rather deal with animals than with humans coz at least, I know that my cats won't manipulate me or make me feel bad. All they want is a head scratch or belly rub or food. Plain and simple.
Anyway, back to parents + kids + animals. How do u justify that it's ok to be kind to ur fellow humans but not to spare a thought for that helpless kitten with a broken leg, hobbling outside ur door? Is there a difference? Both are living, breathing beings, are they not? Both have the capability to feel pain, do they not? I will never, in my life, understand what's the difference between being kind to my species and not to others. If u really wanna get down to it, I think that some of the things that humans do are so vile that even animals would loathe us for it, if they knew.
I find it quite scary to thing that right at this moment, out there, there're tons of parents like this, moulding lil' juniors of themselves to loathe and fear animals. I shudder to think of how we're gonna coexist with the animal species when some of us can't even stand the thought of having an animal near us.
For me, one of the ways to size up a person is to see how s/he reacts to animals (note that I say it's ONE of the ways, and not the ONLY way). It's not entirely fool-proof but it does give me a different aspect of a person. A person can be oh-so-nice to me or to other ppl, but put them in the same room with a cat or a dog and sometimes, u'll see a totally different person altogether. And I'm not talking abt those who have zoophobia. I'm not saying that ppl who dun like animals are bad and oh, I dun expect every single person to be like me and mush and gush over every single animal! I can accept the fact that some ppl just dun like animals, just like how I just dun like some ppl (i.e. humans). BUT even if one doesn't like animals, they can still respect them and not wish/do anything to harm them.
I'm very thankful for the fact that my parents respect and love animals, and taught me to do the same. I've grown up around animals (dogs, mostly) all my life and I've come to learn to love not only dogs, but all the animal species (well, I haven't had any experience with reptiles and a lot of other animals but I think I can handle them. Just teach me how! :p) I get a warm fuzzy feeling when I see my family interact with my cats, when my parents talk to them and treat them like part of the family. And each time, I thank God that my parents didn't raise me up to fear animals.
And I know for a fact that, if ever I have any kids of my own, I'm definitely gonna teach them the same respect and love for animals as I've been taught. No kid of mine is ever gonna fear animals or be cruel to them.
To quote several well-known figures on the subject:
Very little of the great cruelty shown by men can really be attributed to cruel instinct. Most of it comes from thoughtlessness or inherited habit. The roots of cruelty, therefore, are not so much strong as widespread...
~ Dr. Albert Schweitzer, Alsatian Theologian, Musician, and Medical Missionary
Love of animals is a universal impulse, a common ground on which all of us may meet. By loving and understanding animals, perhaps we humans shall come to understand each other.
~ Louis J. Camuti, D.V.M., first American vet to devote his practice exclusively to cats (also a very humorous author of short stories of his time in practice)
Heaven is by favor; if it were by merit your dog would go in and you would stay out. Of all the creatures ever made [man] is the most detestable. Of the entire brood, he is the only one... that possesses malice. He is the only creature that inflicts pain for sport, knowing it to be pain.
~ Mark Twain
posted by Ai Ling at
Thursday, March 16, 2006
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