Comments on: New Swiss law protects rights of ’social’ animals http://www.kittymowmow.com/2008/04/27/new-swiss-law-protects-rights-of-social-animals/ Animal News That Doesn't Have To Be Cute Wed, 02 Sep 2009 04:23:46 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.1 hourly 1 By: RG PetComm http://www.kittymowmow.com/2008/04/27/new-swiss-law-protects-rights-of-social-animals/comment-page-1/#comment-481 RG PetComm Mon, 30 Jun 2008 22:13:51 +0000 http://kittymowmow.wordpress.com/?p=1069#comment-481 Interesting article.... I think it is very important to assure quality of life for most animals but especially dogs: Dog owners can revel in the fact that research studies report a link between dog ownership and reduced stress and improved health for their human companions. There's nothing like the loyalty and unconditional love of a dog to balance the fast-paced, high tech nature of life today. Whatever you have to deal with, when you come home and your dog rushes to greet you with his tail wagging, the troubles of the day melt away. <a href="http://www.rgpetcomm.com" rel="nofollow">Good Dog Panda!!</A> Interesting article….

I think it is very important to assure quality of life for most animals but especially dogs:

Dog owners can revel in the fact that research studies report a link between dog ownership and reduced stress and improved health for their human companions. There’s nothing like the loyalty and unconditional love of a dog to balance the fast-paced, high tech nature of life today. Whatever you have to deal with, when you come home and your dog rushes to greet you with his tail wagging, the troubles of the day melt away.

Good Dog Panda!!

]]> By: kittymowmow http://www.kittymowmow.com/2008/04/27/new-swiss-law-protects-rights-of-social-animals/comment-page-1/#comment-177 kittymowmow Wed, 07 May 2008 15:45:09 +0000 http://kittymowmow.wordpress.com/?p=1069#comment-177 Hi Leela317, You make an excellent point, and I couldn't agree with you more. I've had at least one cat that would probably be happier if there were no other cats in the universe except herself. Also, there are a lot of animals that don't mix well unless both are spayed and neutered (for example, two male rabbits would fight and a male and female would, erm, breed like rabbits). But what if someone doesn't want to spay and neuter their pets? While I strongly support spaying and neutering, I still think it should be up to the individual discretion of the owner. Animals are just like people in this case: they have individual preferences about how much and how often they require contact with other beings. We should be allowed to treat them like the unique individuals they are. Hi Leela317,

You make an excellent point, and I couldn’t agree with you more. I’ve had at least one cat that would probably be happier if there were no other cats in the universe except herself.

Also, there are a lot of animals that don’t mix well unless both are spayed and neutered (for example, two male rabbits would fight and a male and female would, erm, breed like rabbits). But what if someone doesn’t want to spay and neuter their pets? While I strongly support spaying and neutering, I still think it should be up to the individual discretion of the owner.

Animals are just like people in this case: they have individual preferences about how much and how often they require contact with other beings. We should be allowed to treat them like the unique individuals they are.

]]> By: kittymowmow http://www.kittymowmow.com/2008/04/27/new-swiss-law-protects-rights-of-social-animals/comment-page-1/#comment-176 kittymowmow Wed, 07 May 2008 15:32:02 +0000 http://kittymowmow.wordpress.com/?p=1069#comment-176 Hi swissjourno, I think one of my biggest problems with this kind of legislation is simply that it clashes with some of my personal philosophies. I think that most of these sorts of issues should be cared for by individuals and grass-roots social pressures, not law enforcement and government officials. However, not everyone or every society feels this way, and perhaps these laws will work well for the Swiss. Are you from Switzerland? Hi swissjourno,

I think one of my biggest problems with this kind of legislation is simply that it clashes with some of my personal philosophies. I think that most of these sorts of issues should be cared for by individuals and grass-roots social pressures, not law enforcement and government officials. However, not everyone or every society feels this way, and perhaps these laws will work well for the Swiss. Are you from Switzerland?

]]> By: Leela317 http://www.kittymowmow.com/2008/04/27/new-swiss-law-protects-rights-of-social-animals/comment-page-1/#comment-175 Leela317 Fri, 02 May 2008 04:48:41 +0000 http://kittymowmow.wordpress.com/?p=1069#comment-175 So what happens if a member of one of those "social species" isn't particularly social? I've kept guinea pigs for years and for the most part they do enjoy the company of other guinea pigs, but on occasion you do get an ornery one who just wants a cage to himself (it's usually the males who do this). An angry guinea pig can do a surprising amount of damage to a cagemate. Are the owners of these particular animals supposed to keep animals in cages where they'll just fight each other? I'm sorry, that seems far more cruel. I get that legislators- where ever they are- can't be experts on everything, but it would be nice if a little logic was used. So what happens if a member of one of those “social species” isn’t particularly social? I’ve kept guinea pigs for years and for the most part they do enjoy the company of other guinea pigs, but on occasion you do get an ornery one who just wants a cage to himself (it’s usually the males who do this). An angry guinea pig can do a surprising amount of damage to a cagemate. Are the owners of these particular animals supposed to keep animals in cages where they’ll just fight each other? I’m sorry, that seems far more cruel. I get that legislators- where ever they are- can’t be experts on everything, but it would be nice if a little logic was used.

]]> By: swissjourno http://www.kittymowmow.com/2008/04/27/new-swiss-law-protects-rights-of-social-animals/comment-page-1/#comment-174 swissjourno Mon, 28 Apr 2008 19:32:37 +0000 http://kittymowmow.wordpress.com/?p=1069#comment-174 Ridiculous is probably not the right word to describe some of the stuff in the law. If people were looked after this way in Switzerland, there would be a lot less lonely people. Next stop is lawyers for animals (there is a proposal in Swiss parliament). And they haven't forgotten plants: a federal ethics committee has called for measures to protect the dignity of plants. As you can see some Swiss have a real sense of priorities! Ridiculous is probably not the right word to describe some of the stuff in the law. If people were looked after this way in Switzerland, there would be a lot less lonely people. Next stop is lawyers for animals (there is a proposal in Swiss parliament). And they haven’t forgotten plants: a federal ethics committee has called for measures to protect the dignity of plants. As you can see some Swiss have a real sense of priorities!

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