Raising Animal Lovers
Recently I’ve noticed Amare’s overwhelming love for her pets. Amar’e was born into a family of pets....two dogs and two cats. The cats have been apart of this family since Damien was about two. The dogs came into the mix five and three years ago. I have always been an animal lover. That has taken on new meaning now being vegan. I have such respect for all animals that inhabit the earth and I hope to pass this down to my children. Damien has been an animal lover since he was small. There was this one time Damien saw one of the cats on the kitchen counter and ran over to take him off before I seen it because he knew I would have been not pleased. Damien wasn’t wearing a shirt and the cat was still a kitten, as you can imagine this was not a good combination. Damien got scratched unintentionally by the cat, but the situation stuck with me. I think Damien thought that if the cats annoyed me too much I would eventually get rid of them, and he did not want that to happen. Obviously not true, but Damien loved his cats so much, he was going to make sure that they stuck around. Nine years later, the cats are still around. Amar’e has taken a really interest in the pets lately. She is especially interested in our Chihuahua named Darrius. She calls him baby puppy since he is the smaller of the two dogs. She loves, to feed, hold, walk, and kiss him. This has all happened naturally with very little prompting from us. We also have a Boxer named Daycee. Without a doubt, the sweetest dog in the entire world. This dog is so patient and loving with Amar’e, she can hit, chase, kick, sit on, spit on (not cute....but hard to not laugh at), and whatever else she can come up with, and Daycee just returns with a big kiss. Even the temperamental cat, Princeton, has never acted out of anger towards Amar’e despite many occasions of being cornered and getting his tail pulled. Amar’e truly loves these animals and I am proud of that. I hope she grows to learn that animals are to be respected and weren’t placed here on earth for us.....but rather with us. They are not ours to eat, wear, or use to experiment on. This summer we plan to visit a few animal sanctuaries so the kids can interact with different types of animals. I am really looking forward to Damien doing this because he will get to see the animals we don't eat, like cows and pigs up close....I find that this helps a young child, with many other outside influences, visualize these animals and to interact with them on a personal level.
Happy Saturday!
I am so jealous! Our cats were feral when we got them, so they are very standoffish, even though we've had them for nearly a decade. Since the girls get little hands-on time with them, they are still a bit nervous around the kitties.
ReplyDeleteI want to get a dog, but C and V are afraid of them. Our neighbors got the sweetest black lab in the world last summer. The girls were sitting by the fence, and the tiny puppy came bounding toward the fence. He wasn't even barking, but the gals started screaming, and they've been afraid since. They are even afraid of my brother's quiet, sweet, 3-legged rat terrior.
Feral cats....interesting! That is too funny (in a cute way) that they are afraid of the neighbor's puppy. I guess the more positive exposure they get, the better they will be with a dog. I wish you the best of luck. I hope that you guys can one day get a dog because the benefits of being a dog owner are awesome for the entire family! :)
DeleteGreat post Desiree! When I tell people that I don't eat animals, they get frustrated and say "But that's why god made them!". It's too sad that way too many people live with this belief. I have no idea where they learned this from but it's not true!
ReplyDeleteDaycee is so sweet! Nereus has been doing the same things to Maya and she gets really angry with him. If he really pisses her off, she's barking and tries to bite him. Any tips?
It is a bizarre notion that people think that animals were made for us. So not true! :)
DeleteMy advice would be to ensure Maya knows that Nereus comes first. Barking and trying to bite him is not acceptable behavior, and when this happens you should let Maya know this by correcting her. She is tying to correct his behavior, but that is not her job. Have you ever heard of Caesar Milan? I am not into to how commercialized he became, but his information, principles, and practices are awesome! I learned a lot about dog behavior and how to deal with it from reading his books. Once you understand the dog, you can be a better pack leader. That is a good feeling. Good luck my friend. I hope that you guys can find that happy dog baby balance.
xoxo