When to click away from an animal video

--Any wild animal in a house/being treated like a pet. Yes, even if they say they “rescued” it. No legitimate rehabber would EVER treat a wild animal like a pet. Repeat after me: it does not matter if the animal is not suitable for release; they still shouldn’t be kept as a pet.

--Free contact with big cats. Even if it’s a “sanctuary”.

--People interacting with wildlife. Feeding, petting, playing with, etc.

--Free handling venomous snakes.

--Predator and prey interacting. Cats and birds, dogs and birds, literally anything else with birds. Cats or dogs with rodents, etc.

--Any video that claims a wild animal is domesticated. Wild animals are NOT domesticated, but they can be tamed. These are two very different things and anyone who doesn’t understand the difference shouldn’t be owning one of those animals.

--Any video claiming that (insert wild/exotic species here) is “just like owning a dog/cat!” i.e. the video that went around saying foxes are “the best characteristics of cats and dogs”.

--Facilities that breed hybrids or morphs (i.e. ligers, white tigers, coywolves, etc)

--Any video by the Dodo

--Obese animals being portrayed as “cute and chonky”.

--Click bait titles about dangerous/exotic animals i.e. “bitten by my king cobra!”, “my pet fox did what?!?”, “letting my pet alligator pick out a toy!”. You get the idea. Anyone using wild animals to get views/publicity does not have their best interests at heart.

--Any “dog trainers” promoting dominance theory (this shit has been disproven so many times and is not even accurate for wolves...)

--Owl cafes, otter cafes, or any kind of wild animal cafe.

Seriously, don’t give these people views. I understand that it can be hard to distinguish good and bad animal videos, but try and be critical of what you’re consuming. Giving these people views gets them sponsorships and money. Plus, more views = increased circulation of the video. This is honestly especially important on TikTok because there are so many younger people on that app. Look at the comment section on any pet wildlife video and it’s “omg I want one!”, “where can I get one?” over and over. And yes, this does matter. It has been proven that the media we consume does influence people to get these as pets. It is currently baby animal season in the US and my clinic is inundated with people who “rescued” baby wildlife (aka nest-napped) and now want to keep them as a pet. Mostly raccoons but also squirrels, opossums, ducklings, wild birds, and pretty much everything you can imagine.

Don’t hate me but I really believe the world would be a better place if pigeons were the ubiquitous avian pet instead of parrots 👀

since microplastics have now been found in plACENTAS allow me to reiterate: 

faux fur is plastic

pleather literally has plastic in the name

synthetic wool is plastic

stop implying that plastic is good for anything.

So, here we go,

If you live in Colorado and care about animals you need to be aware of Proposition 16, which is being misnamed the Protect Animals from Unnecessary Suffering and Exploitation act. It's not an act, and it...well, let's take a look at it.

First of all, it would remove the "typical animal husbandry" exception from "sexual acts with an animal" and replace it with "For the welfare of the animal." The definition is any penetration of the vagina or anus with a body part or object.

This outlaws:

1. Artificial insemination. This would make it nearly impossible for small ranchers to breed, as many can't afford what it takes to keep a bull or boar. Rams and billies are a BIT easier.

2. Pregnancy tests on livestock. Large animals have to be pregnancy tested by using a transrectal ultrasound. You can't just put one on the belly because they're too big. This would make it impossible to give pregnant animals the care they need and impossible to detect twins in horses (of which the best outcome is at least one very stunted foal). The "welfare of the animal" exemption COULD keep you safe. Or it could not.

3. Taking an animal's temperature. No kidding. This would classify the use of a rectal thermometer as bestiality. Because whoever put this together doesn't have a clue about animals. Even by animal rights activist levels, this is ridiculous. You could get away with it if the animal was sick. But there would go the safest way to determine of a mare or cow was ovulating before you introduce them to the male. Btw, a non-receptive mare will do her best to kill a stallion and with hand or corral breeding, it's common for stallions to get hurt. We used to use cheap disposable stallions for this. We don't want to go back to that process.

4. Surgical castration. Yes, this animal rights sponsored initiative would ban the most humane form of castration of large animals. Do you want your next gelding to have been castrated using the much more traumatic banding method? That's the one where they tie a band around the testicles and wait for them to drop off. Smaller animals are castrated using a different method, but the method for surgical castration in livestock, because of their size, involves a small amount of penetration of the anus.

5. One method of spaying mares. When a mare is spayed, which is not a routine operation and is generally done either for medical or behavioral reason, an ovariectomy is done through either an incision or through the vagina. The last is the most common and safest way. It would be legal to spay a mare if she had a tumor or the like. It would not be legal to spay her if she was unridable when in heat.

So, that's all pretty...bad. And given a vet could be convicted of a sex offense, many vets will leave Colorado. Large animal vets would become almost impossible to find and small animal vets might also flee the state. There's also no exemption to any of these for teaching people how to do the procedure. Under this, I'd be some kind of horrible sex offender for having taught a prepubescent child how to take a horse's temperature. (The look on their faces when they find out where it goes...)

Then there's the second part. Clearly, what they intended to do with this was outlaw veal. Which I have mixed feelings about.

But what they actually have in there is a definition of the "natural lifespan" of livestock and a rule that they have to reach a quarter of that.

For cows, they have the natural lifespan defined at 20 years. I'm not a stockman, so I don't know if that's accurate, but it feels right.

Which means that ranchers in Colorado would have to raise cows until 5 years old.

The typical market age of a steer is 24 months.

Economically, unless they can drive cattle out of the state to be slaughtered (and btw, I am opposed to transporting live animals for slaughter any further than necessary), that puts ranchers out of business. They would no longer be able to export to Japan, which is a big market, because the Japanese won't take meat from cattle older than 30 months.

And believe me? You don't want a steak from a 5 year old cow. You even more don't want to pay more for a steak from a 5 year old cow. So, this thing is this entire mess of even more clueless than animal rights fanatics already are.

If you live in Colorado and somebody asks you to sign this thing, don't. If it ends up on the ballot next year, don't vote yes on it.

It would not protect animals.

It would destroy livelihoods and result in more cruelty. It would destroy not just the ranching industry in Colorado but the horse breeding industry as well. Even if you're a vegetarian, supporting something which would actually increase animal cruelty...

And people are dumb. They may fall for it.

But most people aren't as dumb as the animal rights activists who don't know where the thermometer goes.

for an animal rights activist, you spread a lot of negativity ://

if you want to educate people, don't be like PETA. you'd get better reception and people might actually listen instead of react with more anger and defensiveness.

i agree with your cause and what you stand for, i just don't think it's very well received by the general public with how you do it.

Hello, this is clearly bait. First and foremost, I am NOT an animal rights activist.

I am a wildlife biologist who specializes in the conservation of large predators and animal education. I want what's best for the animal based on its individual needs, I do not care about the perceived anthropomorphic "rights" that an animal has. I care that it is healthy and happy, and free to express natural behaviors safely in a habitat that is suited for it. That is called "Animal Welfare" activism.

I am courteous when the situation calls for it, and abrasive when people need to hear it. I'm not going to hold someones hand and go, "Oh honey baby. Wild animals aren't supposed to be kept as pets uwu."

No. Wild Animals are not meant to be kept as pets and anyone who thinks its okay is endangering the lives of everyone around them and the well being of that animal.

I am not going to sugar coat anything either, "Oh honey bear, kitties are inside only pets, you silly willy."

No. Outdoor cats are a destructive invasive species that decimates wild animal populations that have led to the extinction and endangerment of numerous species of small animals. Aside from the destruction to the environment that outdoor cats perform, they are also exposed to untold disease, illness, and predation. Keep Your Fucking Cat Inside.

Anything else that you think I'm being "negative" about anon?

not to get on my soapbox again but every “cute animal video compilation!!” i’ve seen lately is literally just. *wild animal in somebody’s house* *animal that is clearly in distress* *somebody harassing their pet for views* *another wild animal in somebody’s house* *”””rescue””” animal being treated as a pet* *somebody feeding or interacting with wildlife* *another animal that is clearly in distress* *two animals that should not be anywhere near each other being allowed to interact* *yet another animal that is clearly in distress* with maybe like one or two cute dog videos thrown in

"Mwangi, an agricultural advisor, says production of chicken has improved highly since the project was adopted.

According to him, research has found that purple and pink are colours that scare away predators like eagles. “There are so many eagles hanging from trees around but when they fly to the ground and see the painted chicks, they take off,” says Mwangi"

“Animal Lover” starter pack -Knows nothing about animal body language -”Here’s a video of a lion playing with these dogs! Isn’t it cute?” -”A centipede? If I saw that in my house I would kill it!!!” -”God I wanna go to an owl cafe” -Thinks zoos are evil -”Look at this cute couple with their rescue mountain lion!” -”Wasps are literally evil haha” -”A snake? If I saw that in my house I would kill it!!!” -”A spider? If I saw that in my house I would kill it!!!”

It’s important to bring in short haired dogs and to not be a neglectful caretaker. But there’s another side that I think people should be aware of.

Don’t let dogs freeze, but don’t force cold-weather dogs to go inside when it’s their favorite weather either.

During the dry season, some Bettas can get stuck in puddles -- but they avoid this and will jump to greater levels of water when possible. This survival fact about Bettas is embraced and amplified by the pet industry because it creates huge opportunities for profit -- the sale of more Bettas and tiny "tanks" that falsely suggest they mimic a Betta's habitat. Aquariums are artificial environments, not natural ecosystems. A Betta will not be happy in such cramped conditions (e.g. tanks under 1 gal), just as it would not enjoy getting trapped in a puddle! In the comfort of our homes, Bettas shouldn't just be surviving!

Please consider signing this petition for Petco to raise the recommended minimum Betta fish tank size in their “Betta Care Sheet” from 0.25 gallon to 3 gallon:

https://www.change.org/Petco-Betta-Min

(Find on Instagram)

Hot take but the "uwu precious angel pupper who can do no wrong" idea of dogs that I've seen on the internet lately is dangerous. It's why you have people insisting that dangerous dogs can't be put down because "they'll get better if you just love them enough". I've seen what those dogs can do and I've seen people bend over backwards to blame the people that get mauled or killed. Semi-related, cops also use this ideology to justify use of K-9 units to attack people because juries will and have immediately sided with the dog in cases of police brutality because "it's a puppy".

Hi, I’ve really appreciated your posts on evaluating dog breeders. Do you have any thoughts on evaluating rescue organizations?

Also important but may be a bit trickier. But there are definitely rescue red flags! This will probably piss people off because for some reason people want to give rescues a pass for everything. If one of these makes you made, replace "rescue" with "breeder" and if you're still mad, let's have a civil conversation about it :) cuz I have worked with dozens of rescues over the years and while all of them meant well, some of them had welfare issues that were overlooked because they slapped the word "rescue" or "sanctuary" on their business card. And that is not ok.

--Refusing to euthanize any animal for any reason (hello chronic suffering)

--Lying about/downplaying an animal's behavioral issues

--Any kind of clause that would allow the rescue to show up at your home unannounced or take the animal back at any time for any reason (yes some rescues actually put that in their contracts)

--Taking on so many animals that the health/welfare of other animals suffers i.e. having to keep dogs in small crates long term because they can't say no but don't have room for more

--Similarly, taking on an animal despite knowing the resources aren't available for it (i.e. "i rescued him! haha of course I can't afford to treat his heartworm disease that I knew he had")

--Purchasing animals in any sense of the word. That is NOT rescuing, that is putting money into the pockets of the people they claim they are against

--Farm animals with prosthetic limbs

--Not letting people return animals that aren't a good fit

--Forcing carnivorous or omnivorous animals to eat a vegetarian/vegan diet based on their own morals

--Making up sad stories about animals to encourage donations

--Dangerous or inappropriate handling of animals (i.e. free contact with big cats, taking an alligator to a pet store, cuddling "orphaned" wildlife, etc)

--And while we're at it, anyone claiming to be a wildlife rehabber that is raising orphaned wildlife like a pet and/or not taking precautions to avoid habituation to humans

--Bad husbandry

--Not disclosing a bite history

--Adoption standards that are so strict that the majority of people with jobs, families, etc couldn't possibly meet them (see also: refusing to adopt to people without a fenced in yard is actually kind of low-key kind of classist when you think about it). Yes, being careful is good, but being so insanely picky that virtually no animals get adopted? Not great.

--Lying about a dog's breed to adopt it out to someone that lives in a BSL area (not the same thing as genuinely not knowing what the breed is but come on...you know when it's gonna get labeled as a pit bull and lying about it only hurts the dog and the owner)

--Both "pit bulls are evil, vicious, killing machines that can lock their jaws and eat babies for lunch" or "pit bulls are perfect angel dogs that make perfect pets for literally every person on the planet haha no I don't know what a terrier is"

--A dirty or downright gross facility, or poor biosecurity

--Breeding animals (this is not appropriate in a rescue/sanctuary setting)

--And of course not addressing the health or behavioral issues of an animal

--Anything that would be considered unacceptable for an owner, breeder, pet store, etc or anyone else not labeled a "rescue" to do. It's not ok for them to let animals suffer either.

"Canada Goose's fur-free policy will spare untold thousands of coyotes from being maimed and killed in cruel metal leg-hold traps," she said.

Except it really wont. 

Coyotes are killed in huge numbers and that’s not going to change anytime soon. So instead of making use of them they’ll now just be left to rot. Ranchers, trappers and hunters aren’t going to suddenly stop killing coyotes. Having value as a furbearer is far better than as a pest. Rather than sustainably managing populations many landowners will simply seek to have as many as possible killed off. If there’s no value in the fur then some trappers may switch to live catching for penning, which is far more cruel and causes more suffering than fur trapping. 

Coyote fur is also a far more environmentally friendly material than faux fur. Modern leg-hold traps are designed to hold the animal without causing pain or injury. The outdated image of painful, steel-toothed traps are a world away from modern day trapping. Another positive of fur trapping is that it only takes place during the winter months, so there’s no risk of killing adults with pups. Of all the methods used to hunt and kill coyotes, fur trapping is probably one of the most humane and sustainable. 

It’s extremely sad, but buying a pet from poor conditions at a pet store or from an unethical breeder isn’t “rescuing”. That animal will be replaced by another animal and another as long as people buy. It’s only directly supporting poor animal welfare and continued suffering.

So many times I find myself talking to thin air, but it bears repeating:

Letting your large predatory pets interact with small prey animals is not okay. It needlessly puts that prey animal in danger. It only takes a moment for that predator to kill or maim the other animal, even accidentally.

A playful swat from a dog or cat can still kill a bird, or reptile, or rodent. Even the most gentle loving lick into an open wound can spell death for them.

What about if that prey animal darts away, rightfully in fear of the predator that evolution has taught them to stay far away from, and that predator lunges after them?

Just don't do it folks. Its not cute and its certainly not funny.

And before I hear people deflecting this with, "What about LSGD's?!?"

I raise and train LSGD's and I still wouldn't trust them around anything smaller than their head. Its too much of a risk with something that small and delicate, even a playful nudge would be enough to hurt the prey animal.

Don't let your predators and your small prey to interact unless what you want is a dead prey animal.

idk man I just think it’s kind of ironic for a bunch of Christian-majority European countries to call Muslim and Jewish slaughter practices ‘torture’ when Christianity has never had any religiously-based practices about being humane to animals because the typical Christian-rooted mindset is that the natural world and its creatures are things to be conquered and controlled rather than something we depend on to live, and only recently has the Western Christian world become concerned about the welfare of animals on a wide scale

Obviously this is not only a tiktok problem. People living off from their exotic pets that they are often not equipped to care for.

I am especially bothered by owl videos ,where the animals are clearly not in an enclosure meant to house owls.

And let's not get started on the topic of pets getting released into the wild, (it is covered in the video)

Oh an that toucan guy, who's bird died ,and then got another animal as a "rescue". The bird is being kept in his house, not in an aviary lol.

Same goes for a lot of large parrots all monkeys and primates, possums, raccoons (seriously America why are you keeping a wild animal in your house and why are you habituating it when it is a fucken rabies vector, read up on the problem New York had with them)

Even if these influencers are somehow capable keepers of their animals, they are acting irresponsibly by portraying what they do as some dreamy desirable past time without disclaimers.

This is a calf hutch, not a veal crate.

98% of the times I see posts about “veal crates,” the pictures are of calf hutches. These calves are almost always dairy heifers. They’re future milking cows. They’re not going to be used for veal. Veal crates have been phased out in the US, and most veal calves now live in group pens.

Calf hutches are used to keep the calves safe and warm and to prevent diseases like Cryptosporidiosis, which spread easily amongst individuals.

Been seeing a lot of “backyard eggs are cruel” articles lately, so I wanted to go through a couple of the points they raise and highlight why backyard eggs aren’t inherently cruel.

1) Chicks come from factory farm hatcheries

This point is entirely dependent upon an individuals purchasing choices. The only chicks coming from factory farm hatcheries are production hybrids, so ISA Brown, HYLINE Brown, Utility Leghorn, etc. so long as you don’t purchase these hybrids, you don’t support the unethical factories.

Although private hatcheries have their own plethora of ethical issues, these places are not suppliers to factory farms. The best place to purchase your chicks or pullets from is a private breeder who has good welfare standards. Neither of these options support the factory farms, and the claim that majority of backyard hens come from these factory farm hatcheries is false. I currently can’t name a single person I know with birds from a factory farm hatchery.

2) Male chicks are killed at birth

If you are buying factory farm chicks, yes. However as I mentioned above, few backyard hens are coming from this source. Private hatcheries which sex chicks either sell cockerels cheaper, or sell them in bundle deals for meat birds. Unfortunately private hatcheries are about profit, and believe it or not they can still profit off cockerels.

Private breeders rarely ever sex chicks. It requires specialised training and cockerels are harder to sell, so most sell chicks unsexed. Breeders also want to grow out these cockerels, there needs to be a keep back for the next generation of breeding. Either way, private hatcheries and breeders where a lot of backyard hens are sourced from are not killing male chicks on a large scale.

3) Hens are unhealthy and unnatural due to genetic manipulation

First of all, domestic hens lay more eggs than their ancestors due to selective breeding, not ‘genetic modification’ or ‘genetic manipulation’. Production hybrids are certainly unhealthy, laying over 300 eggs a year causes their bodies to wear out and they’re predisposed to so many reproductive issues. They were bred with the intention of maximum production, replaced after 18 months once this production declines. They are a mess and frankly should not exist.

This is the argument point which always frustrates me the most because, you do realise there are hundreds of chicken breeds right? And just like with dogs, these breeds all have different temperaments, characteristics, and health statuses.

A well bred Wyandotte who lays 200 eggs a year rarely experiences the health issues of production hybrids. These issues are almost unheard of in Sumatra or Sebright who lay 50-100 eggs a year. There are so many heritage breeds out there bred for their longevity, living on average 7-8 years rather than the measly 2-3 of production hybrids.

Most people who keep backyard hens love these birds dearly, these are their pets. Why would someone purchase an unethical production hybrid off the factory farms knowing she will die a horrible death in 2 years, when they could instead get a heritage breed who’ll lay them eggs until she’s at least 5?

I know very few people with backyard hens who keep the production birds

4) Hens are abandoned/killed when production slows/stops

I have yet to meet a single person who has purposefully gotten rid of their hens once production slows or stops.

Production hybrids rarely stop laying unless they are actively affected by reproductive complications, these birds sadly die before they stop laying so owners are definitely not ‘abandoning’ these birds, rather they die long before their time while still pumping out those eggs. Alternatively, heritage breeds will lay for years. We’ve had a 9 year old Sussex still laying eggs. For all the backyard keepers with heritage breeds, the time to ‘replace’ hens is often very far into the future.

This isn’t even raising the point that, these hens are pets. People can eat eggs and still bond fiercely with their hens, people can eat eggs and still value the life of the hen. I don’t think many people are going to turn around and kill their friend suddenly because she stops laying as frequently. My grandfather who used to own a small scale egg farm always kept his old hens who no longer laid, he’d had them for 7 years and that’s an attachment that’s hard to break.

The idea that hens suddenly stop laying eggs one day so people replace them is quite silly, it just doesn’t happen in a backyard setting. Certainly in egg farms, but not with pet hens.

5) Laying eggs depletes nutrients. Hens need to be fed their eggs to get these back

Laying eggs definitely takes up a shocking amount of vitamins, minerals, and amino acids. A big one is calcium, the egg needs a lot to shell it, but each egg also needs enough calcium stores inside the yolk to nurture and grow a chicks skeleton. If a hen doesn’t have enough calcium, she’ll draw it from her bones to produce eggs.

But the thing is, she doesn’t need to eat her own eggs to gain this nutrition back. Chickens have been domesticated for thousands of years, and in this time we’ve perfected their diet. There are many fantastic feeds on the market tailored specifically for a laying hens needs! She should be fed a pellet or mash diet, this ensures she gets the correct amount of all the nutrients, whereas with grain she can pick and chose parts and become deficient. Furthermore, chickens aren’t stupid animals. A hen will know if she needs more calcium, and this is why it’s important to offer them oyster shell, limestone, and crushed egg shells so she can eat extra calcium at her leisure.

Sceptical of the feed, or maybe you just think she deserves those eggs back after all her hard work? Well while it’s nice to treat your hens to an egg every now and then, too many can cause many fatal health issues. If she eats every single egg she lays, AND eats a nutritional balanced diet, she’s getting way too much of those nutrients since the feed is already replacing that loss. A really big concern is that she’ll put on too much weight from all the protein in eggs, this can lead to fatty liver disease which kills many backyard hens annually. Maintaining a good weight in your flock is vital to preventing other health issues too such as egg binding and heart failure.

I love letting my hens eat raw eggs, it’s hilarious and they love it. However I actually had to stop because one of my hens Sooty got dangerously overweight and was at risk of fatty liver disease. You might think feeding hens back their own eggs is great for their health, but it should be in moderation, there is too much of a good thing. Unless you’re feeding your hen rubbish, she doesn’t need the eggs since her diet replaces those nutrients daily, and please don’t feed your hens rubbish.

6) We are using the hens. They are not ours to use as we please

I suppose this point holds up depending on your personal beliefs. I personally don’t feel pet hens are being ‘used’ at all, rather it’s a mutually beneficial relationship. We give them food, safety, and friendship, so they return that friendship and sometimes eggs.

A part of domestication is that the animal adapts to living alongside us, with chickens it just happened to be the constant access to good food and a safe nest encouraged them to lay more eggs. We can’t change that now, so we may as well use the eggs. A dog or cat domesticated for companionship will provide that, are we abusing those pets as well by taking their companionship?

Also if I’m being quite frank, no one will ever get eggs cheaper by keeping backyard chickens. Feed is expensive, coops are expensive, veterinary care is expensive. Anyone getting backyard hens will have some other motive to it rather than just “I want free eggs” because these eggs aren’t free. Most people want a pet, they don’t want to support the factory farming, or they want to feel more self sufficient, maybe all three of those reasons! People aren’t getting backyard hens with the intent of ‘using’ them for eggs, because it’s cheaper just to buy eggs.

So to sum this up, backyard eggs aren’t hurting the hens! If anything, it’s helping them! Showing support for more ethical means of egg production will put pressure on the large scale egg farms to change ways. Hopefully these unethical practices will be phased out one day, it’ll take time, but one step at a time.

Thanks for reading! Epponnee says this egg is for you, they’re tasty and she wants to share! Please take it or she will keep crowing until you do!