You might want to think twice about calling the family dog your pet. Animal companion is much more respectful.
You might want to think twice about calling the family dog your pet. Animal companion is much more respectful.
As for those coyotes in the Beach, they’re not wild, they’re free living or free ranging according to guidelines in the Journal of Animal Ethics, a new publication launched in April.
And please no more references to silly geese, stubborn mules and drunk skunks.
The Journal, a joint effort from Britain’s Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics and the University of Illinois Press, explains the need for a language overhaul in its first edition.
Animal metaphors are usually put-downs, say editors Andrew Linzey and Priscilla N. Cohn. Wild and wildness are associated with an “uncivilized, unrestrained, barbarous existence,’’ they insist. And when pet is combined with owner, it recalls an era when animals were regarded as “property, machines or things to use without moral constraints.’’ That’s why the journal prefers companion animal.
And what of veterinarians working in the trenches? Do they find the term pet demeaning? And is wildness such a bad quality?
Toronto Humane Society veterinarian Joanne Coote, 30, says the term companion animal is commonly used by “anyone who works with animals.’’ This was the preferred term when she studied at the Ontario Veterinary College in Guelph, and it remains common use among vets.
That said, she doesn’t have a big problem with people calling their cats and dogs “pets” — as long as it’s respectful. Most people who have animals in their home don’t regard them as ‘property,’ ” she says, even if they use the term owner to describe themselves.
“Pet owners tend to be people who want to enjoy the companionship of a dog or cat or whatever animal they choose to live with.’’
When she’s on the job, Coote thinks of the relationship in terms of client, patient and veterinarian.
As for our urban ravine dwellers, “I don’t associate ‘wild animal’ with something negative.’’
Dr. Elizabeth Stone, dean of the Ontario Veterinary College, says the profession used to call pets “small animals,” but the preferred term became “companion animals” to recognize the relationship people have with domestic animals.
She doesn’t think pet owner is a derogatory term, and points out there are also positive metaphors associated with animals such as “strong as a bear’’ and “busy as a beaver.”
Ingrid Newkirk, president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, makes the case for semantic distinctions.
The terms wildlife or wild animal aren’t necessarily pejorative but “wild’’ is sometimes used to describe the bad behaviour of human beings, she says in a phone interview from her Washington, D.C., office. And even animal tends to be misused, as in he behaved like an animal. “We’re attributing undesirable traits as having something to do with animals — but they don’t usually rob the 7-Elevens.”
She favours companion animals too, and would like to see people refer to themselves as “rescuers or adopters or guardians.” She believes pronouns are also important when referring to an animal. People should use “he” or “she,” not “it.”
For their part, the editors of the Journal of Animal Ethics refused an interview request from the Star because they feel too much fuss has been made of their guidelines.
“We were trying to help people see the connection between what we think and say about animals, and how they are treated,’’ Linzey said in an email.
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All is grist that comes to the mill. Money is the key that opens all doors. It is comparison that makes men happy or miserable. Write down the advice that you like. It is a blind silly goose that comes to the fox’s sermon. Freedom is the freedom to say that two plus two makes four.The answer is :
SENTENCES WHO The store manager, who is friends with my dad, can get us a deal on a dining table. The runner who won the race is a cancer survivor. My sister, who lives three miles away, is coming over this afternoon. This is my friend Charlie, who I met back in college. The scientists who discovered the vaccine are attending the conference.
RELATIVE PRONOUNS When you are determining whether you should use WHO or THAT, keep these simple guidelines in mind: Who is mostly used to refer to people. That is mostly used when you are talking about an object. That can also be used when you are talking about a class or type of person, such as a team.The answer is :
Demonstrative pronouns this, that, these and those. THAT man standing over there ( Demonstrative pronoun or a determiner) The man is being indicated. The man WHO is standing over there. (Relative Pronoun) although the “who” is redundant since it would be just as clear to say “The man standing over there.”The answer is :
He that will thrive must rise at five. He that nothing questions nothing learns. He that goes to bed thirsty rises healthy. A long dispute means that both parties are wrong. It is a good workman that never blunders. He that returns good for evil obtains the victory.The answer is :
How do you refer to a pet?
As you mention in your question, we can use ‘he’ or ‘she’ to refer to an animal that is a pet. In fact, we nearly always do this. Not only do we use this when the animal is our own pet, but also when we meet someone else’s pet for the first time.