pets

If you’re a logical human being, this is probably already obvious to you, but I wouldn’t have anything to write about if I didn’t think there was a serious issue that needed to be addressed. To put it simply, some people SUCK at taking care of their animals, and that says a lot about the content of their character.

Before I took the plunge and adopted my first real pets- a pair of angelic gerbils- I probably did a solid week of research. What do gerbils eat? What are their temperaments like? What kind of habitat best suits them? What issues should I look out for? I read pretty much every article that appeared on the first two pages of Google (does anybody even go to the second page?)- that is to say, I cared deeply about providing the proper care to my soon-to-be furbabies.

Although it seems like a no-brainer to me, many people don’t take the time to properly research an animal before bringing it into their home. In fact, the reason I decided to write this article is because I recently saw a video on Facebook that showed a chinchilla getting its first dust bath in months after being removed from a neglectful household. The kind soul that rescued the poor thing learned about it from an ad asking for the chinchilla to be re-homed because the children no longer played with it… Are you serious?

The first thing a potential pet owner should realize before deciding to get a pet is that they are committing to caring for the creature for the entirety of its life, not just until they get bored of it or stop caring. I have seen so many PSAs telling people not to get their children rabbits and chicks for Easter as a cute gift because, as the title of this article suggests, PETS ARE NOT TOYS. Animals don’t exist solely for our enjoyment in that moment. They are living their own precious lives and they happen to depend on us for their lives to continue. We have a tremendous responsibility to our pets to make sure they are living the best lives they possibly can, because that is the logical and decent thing to do.

Nothing tells me more about the character of a person than the way they treat animals. Since animals are completely innocent and know nothing about the moral implications of their actions, they should be the easiest beings on the planet to feel sympathy and empathy for. If you can’t even feel empathy for an animal, I have serious doubts that you can feel empathy for your fellow human beings. If you can’t properly take care of your pet, or don’t care to, you are a bad person. Sorry, but there are (almost) no exceptions. They have no choice in the life they are given, so you need to step up and make sure they get the proper care and attention they need.

I have six gerbils, and have taken them to the vet on many different occasions. While many might think I’m insane in the brain for wanting to spend so much money on a rodent that only lives a couple of years anyways, I know that it is the right, ethical thing to do. In fact, if you don’t have the capacity to bring your pets to the vet, no matter how small they are, you should not have a pet. Simple as that. A gerbil deserves just as much medical care as a dog or a cat- they depend on it. They depend on you. So don’t screw it up.

animal gerbil xray skeleton — I recently adopted a baby gerbil (his name is Cashew!) and quickly realized he was not able to eat seeds like his brother was. A quick trip to the vet revealed the source of the problem- his teeth were broken. I would have never known how to help him if I didn’t take him to the vet, and now his life is better for it!

If I can impart anything on you all about the sanctity of animal life and the importance of responsible pet ownership, it’s these points:

Do your research before owning a pet. You should know that chinchillas need a dust bath every day, or that gerbils like to tunnel, so they require a ton of bedding in their habitats. Uneducated pet ownership is bad pet ownership.
Have enough money to bring your pet to the vet- no matter how small. Just like people, animals sometimes need the help of a medical professional. If you see that there is something wrong with your furry friend, and you choose not to bring them to get help, you are letting them down! Their lives depend on you!
If your life circumstances change, consider giving them up for adoption. Sometimes things happen that make it so you are unable to comfortably support a pet- that’s completely understandable! If you are no longer able to give them what they need to live comfortable, happy lives, consider re-homing them to somebody who can.
PETS AREN’T TOYS. Let me reiterate: Don’t buy animals as gifts for fickle children. No bunnies for Easter, black cats for Halloween, or rodents you purchased on an impulse because your kids wouldn’t stop bothering you about it. It’s fine to get your kids pets to teach them about responsibility, but you better be willing to do the research and take care of the animal throughout its lifespan, even after your kids get bored of them. Their lives are literally in your hands.

At the end of the day, all of this comes down to the value and sanctity of life. Respect animals, they have as much a right to life as we do. End of story.

What Being a Vegetarian Means to Me

There were many times in my life where I flirted with vegetarianism. I avoided meat for a few months in high school under the guise of wanting to lose weight, then stopped because it was too hard to reconcile my dietary needs with my family’s preference for meat. My second try was at the start of my freshman year of college “for health reasons,” but, again, I turned back to eating meat because there weren’t enough affordable vegetarian options in the university cafeterias to keep me satisfied.

The point is, I had, for a long time, wanted to make the switch to a meat free life, but always lacked the drive and motivation to stick to it. Believe it or not, living in a society where most people eat meat on a daily basis can make choosing a different path, like veganism or vegetarianism, fairly difficult. There was also always the stigma of being one of “those people”- the annoying vegan/vegetarian that is almost militaristic in their beliefs and criticizes all of the meat eaters of the world, or tries to make faulty arguments about our bodies not being made to consume animal products. Because of the loud minority, this lifestyle definitely leaves a bad taste in some people’s mouths. For these reasons, the first few times I tried cutting out meat, I stuck to such weak and meaningless explanations for my choice- “I want to lose weight,” or “it’s strictly for health reasons.”

Something had to change to make this decision stick. I had to move beyond some shoddy, half-baked reasoning on to something meaningful that I was truly passionate about, or I would never actually get anything out of it. I would just be going through the motions. And sometimes a little heartache and tragedy is enough to do the trick.

An old picture of me and my cat Betsy back from when I was in high school. It was a lucky shot because she’s actually looking into the camera!

I have always been an avid and passionate lover of animals. Growing up, we always had cats- first Jefferson, who was older than I was when he died, then Betsy and Peaches. They were always the lights of my life and gave me endless joy and companionship. I love animals so much I even once considered a career as a veterinarian or a zoologist. But, for some reason, this love alone never clicked as a good enough excuse to quit eating meat. I loved pets, that special class of animal we deemed worthy of love, affection and respect. All of the others… Well, they were on their own. Especially the lowly farm animals. This is something that we, as a society, rationalize and it is something that took a hard lesson for me to unlearn.

About a year ago, when I finally moved out of the dorms and into an apartment of my own, I wanted to get myself a small pet to keep me company, since a cat seemed like too much of a commitment and would be too expensive to keep in an apartment. This led me to PetCo in search of the perfect hamster, the quintessential pet rodent. The universe, however, had different plans in store, as I ended up spying the cutest creature I had ever laid eyes on in my life. It was a gerbil, an “exotic” rodent that most people assume is just another name for a hamster. Although I was clueless about gerbils, I knew then, upon seeing this tiny being, that I was going to adopt them.

Toast as I found him in his tank at the pet store. He was so cute, I couldn’t resist snapping a photo.

The aforementioned creature was butterscotch-colored with huge, almond-shaped, black eyes, a pleasantly round body and a fur-covered tail. When I spotted him, his angelic, sleeping head was sticking out of a ceramic acorn and my heart shattered into a million pieces and then melted. Before long, he, along with his smaller, grey buddy, were mine. I named him Toast and I loved him and his partner, Magellan, like they were my own children. They were my first pets in life that were 100% mine, and I took the role of pet parent very seriously. Soon, my evenings were consumed with spending time with them, letting them run around on my bed, watching them dig tunnels and chew cardboard, and just holding and petting them.

I was so happy and ready to spend the next 3 or so years with my new little friends, which is why it came as a complete shock when, last October, after only about four months of having them, Toast died. The vet informed me that he had a massive tumor that literally crushed his tiny organs. The poor thing had probably been suffering while hiding his symptoms for months. I was devastated. For days, I could hardly keep from crying at the thought of the little guy. After about a week of extreme emotional pain, I came to the realization that I can’t have loved an animal that much, receive so much joy and sorrow from its existence, then continue to eat other animals and cause them pain.

Toast and Magellan had taught me a valuable lesson about the validity of animal life, and gave me a newfound passion and meaning behind my choice to go meat free. Through this conviction to cause as little animal harm as possible, and my respect for all types of animals, I have never faltered on my path of remaining a vegetarian. And now, one year in, I can say I can’t really see myself ever going back. I have never craved meat, or really even missed it. Sure, there are a few of my favorite meaty dishes that I reminisce about, but that nostalgia for meat is never strong enough to surpass my passion for animal life. Plus, there are plenty of meatless “meats” that are incredibly flavorful and delicious, even my meat-loving boyfriend sometimes partakes in my plant-based meat meals.

One question most people ask me is if I have seen any benefits to my health since making the switch, and it’s a hard question to answer. I have not seen any direct, measurable changes in my health. I actually gained some weight in the beginning because I was eating a lot more carbs than my body was used to, but once I figured things out, my body went back to where it has been for the past few years. I think the only direct change I have noticed is that I have less problems with digestion, since my body has always had trouble processing animal fats. But other than that, I feel the same.

Would I recommend others go vegetarian? Of course. Cutting out meat is one of the best ways you can help to reduce your contribution to global climate change, since massive cow farms emit a ton of greenhouse gases. I also think that our society in general puts too much dietary emphasis on meat proteins, and everyone eats way more than they actually need. Even just reducing the amount of meat eaten would help, not only to save animal lives, but to save our planet as well. But I will never force my choice on anyone, as it is something deeply personal and meaningful to me, and I believe that such serious choices should be your decision to make alone.

So- how was my year without meat? It was more full of love and life than ever, and I am so glad to have made this choice for myself and all of the animal friends I have met and will meet. This one is for you.