Is it normal to be against domestication of animals?

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18 Comments

My friend and I were talking the other day when I happened to bring up that I got a rabbit. As usual, he took this opportunity to lecture me regarding his opinions...

He says that domestication of animals for the "entertainment of human" is wrong and that all animals should be let back into the wild where they belong. I told him that many animals, like my rabbit, do not have the survival instincts to survive and he proceeded to tell me that this would not be a problem had we not been selfish and domesticated animals to begin with.

Now, I don't take anything he says personally. I am finding out that he is against the domestication of animals, however he eats meat and animal products which result from the ultimate form of animal domestication. It amuses me more that he would accuse me of wrongfulness whilst doing it himself more so than it offends me.

Is it normal to be against animal domestication, though?

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49% Normal
Based on 45 votes (22 yes)
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Comments ( 18 )
  • shade_ilmaendu
    11 years ago

    Just like ItDuz said. These domestic animals helped us way back in the day, now we take care of them. Why would the animals in question mind? They get everything provided for them and just get to relax and enjoy their lives.

    Anyone against domestication just come and take a look at my cats. I generally can't just lean back and sit on the couch because they're laying all around me, they love me to death and I can tell that they're happy. I can't find a reason to be against that :)

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  • [Old Memory]
    11 years ago

    Just tell him how the first domestication of animals was, in a way, asked of by both man and animal. Grey hounds were happy to help men hunt for food, given that we give them parts of the food we hunted. Now, animals do not need to hunt for food, we give them it for free. In a sense, i think we are being greatful by taking care of the animals that helped us in our primtive times.

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  • wigsplitz
    11 years ago

    So is you friend pissed about people keeping animals as pets only?

    If that's the case then eh, I can sort of see where he's coming from but it's a pretty useless stand to take since releasing these animals would be worse than keeping them. I could see if he's against MORE pet-intended breeding. Pets are a novelty, really. At least food and working animals have more of a purpose even though they're still 'kept'.

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    • VioletTrees
      11 years ago

      Pets are usually a novelty, but sometimes they can be really useful for therapy, even if they're not service animals (which I assume would fall under the category of "working animals").

      I don't think breeding is inherently wrong, but there are enough homeless animals that breeding is pretty pointless at this point, and it adds to the problem of stray and homeless animals. Plus, many of the types people have bred suffer as a result of their breeding. Persian cats are prone to breathing problems, kidney failure, and painful eye conditions, for example. It's a really shitty thing to do to animals just so you can have cats with weird goblin faces.

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  • disthing
    11 years ago

    I think it's unusual to be against all domestication of animals.

    I feel strongly about the conditions pets are kept in, for example I don't agree with keeping birds in cages or rabbits in hutches, and I'm against breeding animals for superficial reasons (dogs in particular). Also there are certain animals that shouldn't be domesticated because they suffer when kept in an unnatural environment and situation.

    However, generally as long as the physiological and psychological needs of the animal are adequately met, I can't see the problem.

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    • loopoo
      11 years ago

      Same. Birds being put in cages is awful.

      But where would zoo's be put in to it :O
      Putting monkeys in glass rooms is sick

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      • disthing
        11 years ago

        Great question, I hadn't thought about zoos. I'm in two minds about them, but this article is really good and I recommend you give it a read:

        http://www.goodzoos.com/arezoos.htm

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  • [email protected]
    11 years ago

    What the fuck else would we do with them?

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  • TheMysticalTaco
    11 years ago

    This all depends on wich way you aproch the idea of domestication
    On one hand we do take them out of there natural habitat and tame them some people are cruel to the animals but others are doing this out of kindness like taking in a dog with a missing leg or a bird with unusable wings but on the other hand if we had never started domestication we wouldnt know as much about animals, farms wouldnt have livestock, more animals would probebly be extinct and other consiquential things.

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  • ccjigsaw
    11 years ago

    I agree kindof. I remember one time the animal shelter was trying to find a good home for a stray cat they found. They said that by the time they found him he was "completely wild" I was thinking... why didn't they just let him live his wild kitty life? They had trouble taming him and couldn't find him a home...

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  • boehawk
    11 years ago

    Sounds like when a vegan set there telling me what a terrible person I was for eating meat while she was wearing a leather belt and leather shoes . She all so had no clue that marshmallows and jello had animal products in then . IMHO live how you want to live and let that serve as a example to others , don't try to force your life style on others .

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  • squeallikeasacofpigs
    11 years ago

    "many animals, like my rabbit, do not have the survival instincts to survive"

    Well that's bullshit because how do you think rabbits were domesticated in the first place if they weren't already existing naturally in the wild....surviving. Every animal has the necessary survival instincts. If you left your dog in the middle of nowhere it would be able to survive. Just like you would be able to survive in a forest. Just because it lives a domesticated life doesn't mean it doesn't know how to survive in the wild.

    Anyway, you're friend is a prick and a loud mouthed one at that.

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    • wigsplitz
      11 years ago

      Nooo, most animals would die if just set free! Domestic animals set free are called 'feral' and differentiated from their true wild ancestors. Many still depend on humans to some degree....(stealing food, raiding trash, eating other domestic animals, etc). Which in itself causes them a great threat.

      It generally takes a few to several generations for a domestic animal to revert satisfactorily to a more 'wild' state.

      If you look at animals such as horses it's very easy to see the physiological differences between domestic and feral and wild. A domestic horse would have significant hoof and tooth problems if let go into the wild. A mustang's hoof is HUGE and hardy compared to a modern domestic horse. A mustang is HUGE itself compared to true wild horses.

      The few who did survive, it wouldn't be without a lot of pain and suffering-and death. If a feral animal doesn't starve or get eaten, it will likely be killed due to being a nuisance or being easy prey. Much fewer of it's offspring will survive, if any. Many domestic animals are kept in a place where they ordinarily can't live due to weather, as well. To let them go would be to have them starve (or be eaten by real wild animals) very quickly.

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      • Anonymous Post Author
        11 years ago

        Thank you.

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      • squeallikeasacofpigs
        11 years ago

        Cool story bro

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    • VioletTrees
      11 years ago

      My rabbit doesn't fear predators. If I didn't protect her, she would be killed very quickly in the wild. She'll run if there's a loud sound, such as a dog barking loudly, but she won't run if she's being stalked. She doesn't know that people and other animals can be dangerous, and she'd probably be dead before she learned.

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      • NeuroNeptunian
        11 years ago

        Sorry to respond so late, but this is how my rabbit is to. He will approach people and he doesn't seem to have much of a fear of other animals unless they make a loud sound. He loves being pet and coddled and if a wild animal approached him, he'd probably run up to the animal to fulfill his curiosity and be killed on the spot.

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        • VioletTrees
          11 years ago

          My rabbit runs up to stray cats near our house all the time to make friends, even when they're obviously stalking her. I have to chase them away.

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