by FoxyJama » Thu May 12, 2005 5:45 pm
Before anyone views me as a rabid hammer wielding rat murderer, I'd like to share that I disapprove of killing any living thing for no reason. I don't even kill spiders or insects that get into my house, they get put into a cup and safely transported outside to continue their brief and simple life. I have no problems with hunting for food if you need it, or killing an animal so that one in your care can survive. It's not an easy thing to do, and I have to wrap up the rat in a paper bag so that I don't have to see it.
Luckily, with Jake eating frozen mice, fresh killing is not something I will have to do on a regular basis. The frozen mice are raised as food animals and killed in a more humane manner than I can provide them. But I can, have, and will continue to provide my pets with whatever they require even if it means I have to swallow my pride, squeemishness, moral and religious high ground. My snakes and cats have always been like children to me, and they are helpless and *totally* dependent on me for their care. There is very little I wouldn't sacrifice for them.
I still get a little shaky when I have to kill any animal. Having to put down my parent's beagle puppy was hard, even though she was in a lot of pain and I didn't want her to suffer anymore. I attempt to follow the 8-fold path as much as possible, but there are circumstances where it is neither practical nor humane.
It comforts me to know that the mice I feed to Jake are bred for the specific purpose of being foodstuffs. Rather than senseless death which happens around us every day, or death for sport, their death serves the noble purpose of keeping another animal alive. It's part of a chain that we all participate in (even vegetarians!) every day. The rewards for the rodent sacrifices are well worth it to me when I see Jake full and sluggish as he digests his way to being healthy again.
"Music is the brandy of the damned." - George Bernard Shaw
