Calling animals 'pets' is insulting, academics claim

[pintobean]

<snip>

Domestic dogs, cats, hamsters or budgerigars should be rebranded as “companion animals” while owners should be known as “human carers”, they insist.

Even terms such as wildlife are dismissed as insulting to the animals concerned – who should instead be known as “free-living”, the academics including an Oxford professor suggest.

The call comes from the editors of then Journal of Animal Ethics, a new academic publication devoted to the issue.

<snip>

Phrases such as “sly as a fox, “eat like a pig” or “drunk as a skunk” are all unfair to animals, they claim.

<snip>

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/8479391/Calling-animals-pets-is-insulting-academics-claim.html

[notesdev]

1. I call them

"master"

then again, I have cats.

Dunno what the dog people are going to do

[pipi_k]

This dog person...

calls 'em "the kids". Or "the girls".

We're not caregivers or masters, we're Mommy and Daddy.


Anyway, I have two young German Shepherds who still can't be trusted to run free in the house while we're away, although we're working on allowing them free range of the house at night when it's bedtime and they know it's time to sleep.

They have their crates with doors on them and we put them in when we leave the house, always making sure not to stay away too long. So it can be sort of interesting when we're out and about and one of us says it's time to get going so we can let the kids out of their cages...

hahahahahahh

I fully expect to be investigated by Child Welfare authorities one day.

[niyad]

18. same here

[FSogol]

2. Earthworms aren't just worms, they will now be called, "our soil renewing parteners."

:shrug:

[ChazII]

Thanks for the laugh. n/t

[buddysmellgood]

9. Amen

[StarburstClock]

33. Good one!

and dung beetles will no longer have "shit-eatin grins".

[Appenzell Wars]

3. I have a feeling calling these folks "academics" is quite insulting to a few people.

This reminds me of those swiss folks that wanted rights extended to tomatoes.

[Matariki]

49. +1

lol

[hlthe2b]

4. Worshipped "Goddess", in my house...

;)

She's working on "Czarina of the Universe," however....

[niyad]

19. yours and mine must be related

[wryter2000]

5. My snake doesn't care. Honest.

Neither does the stupid cat that lives in my yard. In fact, I imagine the ferals in the neighborhood would love to be called pets if it got them regular feedings.

[WinkyDink]

6. I'm dropping the phrase "smart as an Oxford professor," myself.

[Phoonzang]

7. Do these people get paid? If so, can their funding be cut. Please? nt

[NV Whino]

8. And I call those editors

Idiots.

[snooper2]

10. Greatness

In about 18 million years the Council of Pig-Human relations will take this up...

The pigs will point to millions of years of discrimination and hate speech.
The humans will point to millions of years of breeding to keep the species alive :rofl:

[MineralMan]

11. Which academics say that? PETAcademics, I believe.

More silliness on the Royal Wedding day.

[Mz Pip]

12. Oh good grief.

This is beyond silly. My cats don't care what they are called. They rarely even answer to their names.

[Baclava]

29. Exactly

[slackmaster]

13. Those "academics" sound like a bunch of stupid toads

[Stevenmarc]

14. Oh for Christ sake, It doesn't matter what you call them it's the tone they respond to.

[Swede]

15. My nephews dog eats shit,all he can find.

Calling him a pet is not going to hurt his feelings.

[yurbud]

16. the world is going to shit and this is the most important thing some scholar can spend his time on?

It's kind of like bitching about ugly carpet on the Titanic.

[niyad]

17. boulder county actually does call them companions

[JTG of the PRB]

41. And in Boulder, there are no owners - just "guardians."

But, then again, Boulder has always been a little ahead of the times and/or really, really weird.

[flvegan]

51. As it should be.

[PVnRT]

20. Know what's really unfair to animals?

Creulty, factory farming, massive feedlots, inhumane slaughtering. Why don't we tackle those first, oh eminent scholars?

[stuntcat]

22. right-o.

I try not to call these cats "mine" or consider them my property, but beyond that I won't worry too much about how to discuss them.

The animals brutally tortured for our munching enjoyment are more than mindless bags of meat though, they really deserve more respect.

[anneboleyn]

45. Yes, exactly!

[pnwmom]

21. Uh-oh. Are they afraid we'll hurt the animals' feelings?

Somehow I doubt it.

[hifiguy]

23. Some people have far too much time on their hands

if this is all they have to worry about. :eyes:

I refer to my cat as my cat or my roommate because that's what he is. And I don't think the animals in question give a flying eff as long as the food dish is full.

[EOTE]

24. As a Canine-American, I say it's about time.

It's long due that we start receiving the respect and dignity we deserve. Now excuse me while I get back to licking my testicles and rectum.

[Brigid]

27. DUzy over here! DUzy over here!

:rofl:

[ncrainbowgrrl]

50. ROFLMAO

Thanks for the laugh!!

[davsand]

25. I suppose calling the academics BATSHIT NUTS is also off the table?

As much as I deplore animal cruelty, this kind of thing makes me almost as pissed off. They are our companion animals, no doubt, but I seriously doubt there are very many people who live with animals that do not view them as a form of family member.

PETA lost me when they tried to tell me that domesticating dogs and cats was a cruel act because it denies them their natural behaviors. Can't speak for anybody else here, but the cat living in this household eats, sleeps, and poops in a heated/air conditioned environment free of predators and threat. That food bowl is never empty, and food scarcity is not even on the radar. Feline health care is provided at no charge--including preventive meds.

Yeah, THAT cruel existence is not enjoyed by most American citizens.




Laura

[Curmudgeoness]

26. This is what gives academics a bad name. Liberal elitists.

Then anyone with a brain and willing to use it is lumped in with these morons.

I prefer "fur babies" to "companion animals" and I call myself "mom" instead of "human carers". That keeps the species issue out of it. I mean seriously, my animals would be highly offended to be called animals of any kind.

[Yo_Mama]

28. Well, we could always try calling them "Lunch" and "Dinner"

Fed up with causists who care more about animals than people, thus ending up making poor people abandon their "companion animals".

Useless rhetoric, IMO.

[Aerows]

30. Insulting to what?

The pet? I'm pretty sure my cat doesn't care what I call her as long as I keep the food bowl full. I'm pretty sure she has some derogatory things that she thinks about me, such as "Finally, here comes my human and the bitch is already an hour late bringing me my Fancy Feast."

[ItNerd4life]

31. lol. Loving all the 'names' people are coming up with for these peanut brained professors. nt.

[WatsonT]

32. So some professors got tenure and decided to see what they could get away with

I think they could dial it up to 11. Animals should be able to vote!

[GSLevel9]

34. I'll agree with that...

they're family members, plain and simple.

[Vinca]

35. If you have cats around, you know they are not "pets." They are rulers.

[Gemini Cat]

38. yep.

I sometimes wonder how that happend. I used to be king, but there was a coup and I lost!

[anneboleyn]

46. My cat told me that I may call him "my precious" and "HRH." So that was settled.

[X_Digger]

36. Oh FFS..

I could say, "C'mere shithead" to my dog, and he'd come running to be pet, and no, he won't suffer an inferiority complex.

Anthropomorphism at it's stupidest.

[LiberalAndProud]

37. FFS. Exactly!

Are these people making money on this tripe?

[CBGLuthier]

39. There was a campaign started in 1959 to put pants on horses

by the Society for Indecency to Naked Animals. It lasted for almost FOUR years. It was taken quite seriously until someone noticed Buck Henry was involved.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Society_for_Indecency_to_Naked_Animals


This reeks if that.

[anneboleyn]

47. Oh FFS. That is truly unbelievable. I am sure the naked horses were mortified.

[Ikonoklast]

40. After consulting with my feline housemates, the consensus arrived at is

that there are many English academics that are as daft as a balloon.

[Motown_Johnny]

42. When my pets complain, I will take notice. Until then

not so much

[petronius]

43. As an academic, I want to say to all people who work for a living and are expected to be useful:

http://www.jlh-design.com.nyud.net:8090/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/simpsons_nelson_haha3.jpg

;)

[rustydog]

44. They can kiss my pet-owning ass.

A tad too fuggin' politically correct for me.

[roody]

48. I'll just keep calling him "Bambino" then.

[guardian]

52. This Prof Linzey truly sounds mentally insane.

People like this should be committed for their own protection and the betterment of society.