Human exceptionalism imposes horrible costs on other animals

[Judi Lynn]

Human exceptionalism imposes horrible costs on other animals

One of the most remarkable cats I have ever lived with was an all-white female with one blue and one green eye. She was hard of hearing, though not deaf. She came to us from a local animal rescuer along with her sister; the pair, whom I named Kayley and Hayley, joined the large outdoor-indoor enclosure for homeless cats in our side yard.

The sisters made good lives for themselves for eight years, spending much of their time together. Kayley was the more adventurous, taking evident enjoyment in climbing to the top of green leafy bushes to bask and doze in the sun. She weathered the partial surgical amputation of both ears owing to cancer.

Then Hayley died of cancer. We laid her body on a tarp in the grass. Several cats sniffed at it briefly, but Kayley acted unlike anyone else. She stared long and fixedly at her sister from a short distance away. For the first time in her life, she was without her closest companion.

When more cats in the enclosure grew old and died, we brought Kayley indoors. Unwitnessed by us, she sustained a complex fracture of her femur, then escaped her carrier as we brought her home from the vet. Experienced cat caretakers, we felt guilty and terrible. For a month, we searched for her in wintry conditions, finding her at last, filthy, thin and hungry. Indoors again, she not only healed, but also warmed to living with us, reclining on our sunroom couch or inside a woven basket, prancing in place as we rubbed her neck. This summer, 13 years after she came to us, she died of abdominal cancer.

More:
https://psyche.co/ideas/human-exceptionalism-imposes-horrible-costs-on-other-animals

[I_UndergroundPanther]

1. It hurts so bad

When a beloved cat leaves. Hayley had a good life with you. When I had 4 cats and Bigfoot was the first to go he had cancer in his neck. I put the carrier on the floor and opened the door so the cats would know he passed.Each cat walked into the carrier while the other two waited in line right by the carrier. It was so sad. It reminded me of wild birds. When a bird sees another bird die they all stop singing.
It stays silent for around 3-5 minutes then its bird noises like normal.

Animals do mourn,when Sparkle lost his boyfreind Rustle he was inconsolable he laid on the bed where Rustle slept for days. He wouldnt eat or drink. I was about to take him to the vet the next day but he began drinking some broth from a spoon. He took comfort in me holding him close and over time he became his old self.

Animals do mourn. Wish people saw birds and cats and other species as brothers and sisters on this planet we share. Just because we cannot interpret why they do things because we are looking at them through our own human ways of doing things we miss the deep connections animals have with each other. It is amazing how animals have such deep emotion such love and nobility.

I hope Hayley is in Lady Bast's arms right now waiting for you..

[live love laugh]

2. White supremacy does the same thing.