For me, I cannot pretend to know all the variables that effect animals today. Off the top of my head, I can imagine that animal testing, destruction of animal environments, and puppy mills are potentially harmful to non-human species.
In the coming weeks, I plan to research and investigate the facts and stats on how animals are treated throughout the world. I have quite a few questions about the treatment of animals. At what rate are we losing species? Are corporations being ethical in their treatment of animals? Are more dogs being bought at pet shops than at shelters? What about euthanasia for animals? Is it population control or wrongful execution for creatures who have no voice? More importantly, should animals have a voice? Are they important enough?
What's my proverbial dog in this fight?
I own a rabbit. She's my first pet ever and I love her very much. Her name is Dobbie. My husband and I bought Dobbie from a Petland in Columbus, Georgia in 2009 when she was about eight weeks old. Here's a young bunny picture of her:
My husband was hesitant about my pet choice, stating that rabbits are definitely not dogs. Meaning they lack personality and seem boring. I scoffed and said that squirrels have personality, why wouldn't rabbits? He also doubted this.
When we went Petland to look for rabbits, Dobbie was sitting in a pin with what I assume was her kin. When I put my hand down to pet one of the rabbits, she was the only one to bounce over and give me a sniff. When she gave me a friendly lick on my fingers, I was smitten. She did the same for my husband and he melted. We couldn't get her that night, not without doing my research on rabbits and prepping our apartment. So we went home with her on our minds.
After I did my homework I was ready to be a Bunny Mom. We went back to the same Petland, hoping to find Dobbie. Sure enough, I saw the same panda-looking bunny and when she returned to me, she sniffed and licked my hands. We took her home.
Now Dobbie is about two years old. She's a fun animal, full of personality. I can tell when she's happy, excited, frightened and sad. It's not too hard if you do the research on rabbits.
Having Dobbie in my life and being her caretaker, has given me new perspective on the lives of animals. Sometimes I look at Dobbie, sunning herself in the middle of the living room and wonder if she has important thoughts. What is she thinking? Does she have hopes and dreams? Or is she just waiting for next banana chip? People might think me odd for wondering, perhaps siting that animals even don't have souls.
Souls or not, how do we put animals into categories of Pet, Food, and Other? Killing dogs or testing cats for science seems obscene to most Americans. But what's the difference between a dog and a Rhesus monkey? Personality? Dobbie disproves that for me. I suppose she is my reason for staking claim to the animal treatment dialogue.
Expect more thoughts on Dobbie and other animals this month. I plan to research heavily and talk to people who have also taken part in the dialogue that is Animal Rights.
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