Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
24,544 posts, read 56,068,476 times
Reputation: 11862
Quote:
Originally Posted by Doll Eyes
As a childfree, I perfer to have my dog over a human child because I can decide what I want for the dog (food, when it takes walks, how I train it) without asking someone else. Unless you're single parent, you would be required to 'share' the child with a S.O. Raising a child with someone else requires a lot of trust I don't have. I will not have to pay for a dog's college expenses. I can leave my dog home for a few hours alone. Whatever you teach the child is going to drastically affect the livelihoods of other people, unless extreme circumstances, same cannot be said for a dog. Liking pets doesn't mean you hate children and vice versa. Kids are just not conducive to some people's lifestyles and pets are. Not a big deal, IMO.
People have been known to run back into burning homes to get a pet and a child. The pet person sans kids can love their pet as much as the parent loves their child. I don't think one is 'higher' up on the totem pole then the other, just different.
Usually even the most fanatical pet lover will make a space for their own child above Fido, when they have their own children.
I can't say I have ever thought of this option for recourse!
I have photos of my nieblings, all Labs, in my wallet for the first time someone shows me a photo of their kid.
I also have a photo of my cat in my wallet.
Usually, they get the point.
I don't like babies, I do like kids around 4 and up when they can think and hold a conversation.
No, I don't want to hold or coo at your baby.
I mentioned this earlier in the thread, but I wanted to bring it up again. There is a difference between the idea that some people prefer to HAVE babies vs. aminals, or animals vs. babies, and the idea that some people are just more drawn to one over the other.
I'm definitely someone who prefers to HAVE pets over kids, but I also prefer to see or be around animals over kids. My sister has kids and animals, but if you look at the wall calendars we both have hanging up, we both have animals, but I'm guessing she is more drawn to animals than kids. She may be a person who likes to HAVE kids, but she isn't decorating her home with pictures of strange random children. She has a few pictures hanging up of her own kids, and a photo or two of her own dogs, but she also has art that includes golden retrievers (not her actual dogs, but dogs in paintings that look similar).
People are more likely to buy calendars, framed art, home decor with animal pictures on it that pictures of babies and kids. I know some people who are more drawn to babies, and they have those calendars with babies dressed as vegetables, etc. I know a few people with paintings in their home of children--kids they don't know, who may or may not have been real, or who may have lived 100 years ago. But I know a LOT more people who have pictures in their homes that include animals. Pastural scenes of cows or sheep grazing, paintings of horses, kitchy decor with pigs and chickens and cats, figurines of dogs & puppies. Who has figurines of babies? I think those people would certainly be in the minority.
I just did an informal survey in my workplace (hardly scientific, but shows my point). I walked past 26 offices and cubicles that had a wall calendar hanging up. Of those 26, one was a home-made digital photo calendar with pictures of kids--but it's the employee's actual kids. No one had a calendar with pictures of unknown babies or children. Fourteen had calendars with animals photos. Two had calendars with copies of paintings as the picture, and both of those contained some types of animal. Three had some type of sports calendar (One of those was a sports team with an animal logo, but I won't count that. But it makes you think, you never name a team the "babies" or the "moppets.") Of the 6 remaining, I couldn't really make out any actual picture (without invading the person's office) may just really small pictures but mostly lots of words--the calendars were from realtors, insurance agents, vendors, etc.
So what does this say? I have no idea. But maybe I could conclude the following:
I work with an inordinate amount of animal lovers? Not likely.
Only one of my co-workers has kids? Not true, many of those 26 people represented by their calendars do have kids.
People largely prefer images of animals to images of immature humans, unless said immature humans sprung from their own loins or the loins of their offspring.
I need to focus more on getting my work done than on poking around looking at people's calendars.
Because dogs/puppies are innocent creatures that need love and to be taken care of. Babies/kids are brats that turn into grown up people that you see everyday. Your baby/kid is no different than any other human walking by on the street. Funny how people care so much about the children but yet when those children turn 18 they don't give a damn anymore.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
