Hehe, I used this fake ad as the spring board of my Child and Adolescent Development final last year on the ethics of age appropriate day care for toddlers. Rough thesis: devil's advocate that kids don't need mental or physical stimulation at young ages, we can just crate them like dogs during the day while their parents are at work (but only for up to 8 hours!), since they have roughly the same cognitive development levels.
People who can't demonstrate basic responsibility and decency towards a non-human companion shouldn't become parents, IMHO. Because I always wonder what happens when that baby stops being ickle and cute and starts being a hell of a lot of hard work (and you can't just "drop it off" somewhere) and some other interest becomes more important than having a kid.
And part of responsibile parenthood is about teaching your children how to treat animals; that they're not toys or gifts or disposable when they get inconvenient.
This is so... it definitely makes you think. To me, my pets ARE my children and part of the family and this would never happen- but there are so many people who do this.
I'm currently pregnant, and it's bugging the hell out of my wife and I that SO MANY PEOPLE keep asking us what we're going to "do" about our two cats. Um, we'll have two cats and a baby. What the hell? "You have to be careful you know" they keep saying. Ugh. It's driving me crazy.
I never got that. When I was born, my parents had cats; it was awesome, I had two feline buddies I grew up with.
My kids have grown up with animals and for my oldest, his interactions with the budgie were amazing: he hardly spoke to people and flipped out when stressed, but he and the bird had this trust for one another and she'd sit on his finger.
And my youngest? I have never known a little guy who adores cats like he does. It's the coolest thing ever.
And both of them know about going to rescue operations and not petshops, and that "Santa doesn't give live animals as presents because animals and people aren't things" and in turn, the animals really like the kids. We're living with my Mum at the moment, and her dog and my oldest have this spooky connection and they're just really relaxed with one another.
Honestly, if people have the time and the interest, I'd recommend having pets in the house as well as small people
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I agree. I'm so excited for our (in constant need of attention) cats to have another person to love and care for them, and for our child to learn how to be gentle and all of that good stuff.
That's horrible. And frankly, emotionally abusive. Ugh.
Re: Bizarro cartoon...roamingMarch 2 2011, 20:32:46 UTC
I do too. Especially when people say things like "But it's JUST an animal, fer pete's sake!" like of course anyone would agree with that. That's when I always refer to Jeremy Bentham's famous quote, shortened to "But a full-grown horse or dog, is beyond comparison a more rational, as well as a more conversable animal, than an infant of a day or a week or even a month, old. But suppose the case were otherwise, what would it avail? The question is not, Can they reason? nor, Can they talk? but, Can they suffer?"
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People who can't demonstrate basic responsibility and decency towards a non-human companion shouldn't become parents, IMHO. Because I always wonder what happens when that baby stops being ickle and cute and starts being a hell of a lot of hard work (and you can't just "drop it off" somewhere) and some other interest becomes more important than having a kid.
And part of responsibile parenthood is about teaching your children how to treat animals; that they're not toys or gifts or disposable when they get inconvenient.
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This is so... it definitely makes you think. To me, my pets ARE my children and part of the family and this would never happen- but there are so many people who do this.
Well written and very poignant.
Thanks for your post. :)
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I'm currently pregnant, and it's bugging the hell out of my wife and I that SO MANY PEOPLE keep asking us what we're going to "do" about our two cats. Um, we'll have two cats and a baby. What the hell? "You have to be careful you know" they keep saying. Ugh. It's driving me crazy.
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My kids have grown up with animals and for my oldest, his interactions with the budgie were amazing: he hardly spoke to people and flipped out when stressed, but he and the bird had this trust for one another and she'd sit on his finger.
And my youngest? I have never known a little guy who adores cats like he does. It's the coolest thing ever.
And both of them know about going to rescue operations and not petshops, and that "Santa doesn't give live animals as presents because animals and people aren't things" and in turn, the animals really like the kids. We're living with my Mum at the moment, and her dog and my oldest have this spooky connection and they're just really relaxed with one another.
Honestly, if people have the time and the interest, I'd recommend having pets in the house as well as small people ( ... )
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That's horrible. And frankly, emotionally abusive. Ugh.
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