别把宠物当孩子

By+Chelsea+Samelson

In case you missed it， a video last week showed a miniature horse eating a bowl of carrots—from a high chair1. A high chair. Yes， really.

Some people were appalled， some were amused， some simply couldnt believe that someone， somewhere put a horse in a high chair.

But perhaps it shouldnt be all that surprising—it might seem absurd， but it might also be the logical extension of the growing trend of treating animals as human and treating pets as children， equivalent to the toddler2 who eats from the same chair.

Examples of this attitude are everywhere， and range from the innocent to the near-insane. Some people dress up their pets for Halloween， throw them birthday parties3， or create social media accounts for them. There are now five-star cat resorts， offering spa services， fine dining， and four-poster beds4. Yoga studios now offer“doga”5 classes to teach downward dog—to dogs. Fancy boutiques sell designer pet panties and bikinis， and doctors will perform cosmetic surgery in case your pet needs a facelift.

Should any of this cause concern？ Should we just smile and nod when people call their pets their kids and treat them as such？ Should we shrug off the Facebook page “Animals are People Too” and “My Child has Four Paws” bumper stickers？6

No. Because animals arent people. And pets arent children.

Pointing out basic biological realities shouldnt trigger outrage or offense， but when it comes to pets today， it often does.

There seems to be confusion about the difference between pets and children and an increasingly large group of people who genuinely believe that having a pet is the same thing as being a parent. They adopt the language of parenthood with their pets， calling themselves “mommy” or “daddy” when talking to their “fur kid7，” “baby，” “or “child，” for example.

Of course， its one thing to use such language lightly， as an innocent expression of love or a reflection of the great joy and deep bonds that pets， like children， can create.

Its quite another to use this language literally8.

Words matter. Using inaccurate labels for things doesnt just blur the very real lines between pets and people； it can lead to dangerous delusions9. What if a woman starts thinking she knows what a mom of two kids is going through because shes a “mom” to two cats？ What if a man believes having a baby wont be much different than being a “dad” to a dog？ Misnaming isnt just silly linguistics if it triggers a retreat from reality.

Every pet has or had its own parent—another cat or dog that would have fed， nurtured， and raised its offspring， teaching it to survive as a wild creature in the animal kingdom.

When people adopt pets， we tame whats wild， teaching it how to survive in the human realm—how to pee in the right place and not drink from the toilet. We dont parent animals， we humanize them.

Its the irony at the heart of pet-people relationships： often， our love for animals stems from their differences from us， yet once we have them， we treat them like theyre people. Sometimes， this spirals out of control， leading to creepy industries like pet cosmetic surgery.10 But we cant call our role with pets “parenting” when we do the opposite of what a pets parent would do.

Nonetheless， “pet parents” point out that they do everything real parents do—feed， bathe， cuddle11， clean up， care for， and love. Indeed， all these actions constitute part of the rituals and routines of true parenthood. But only in part， and with far lower stakes12.

One does not， and cannot， teach character and morality to cats and dogs， yet thats the most important job of a parent. Having a child means preparing another mind and soul for adulthood and independence. Having a pet means keeping an animal obedient and dependent so it never leaves the way a child will.

Pets and children serve different roles， occupying different places in the lives of humans. Ignoring or actively denying these fundamental differences benefits neither creatures nor people.

Calling a pet a child， or yourself its parent， ultimately reflects a misunderstanding of what animals are and what parenting is. We can call pets“pets” without loving them any less. We need not conflate13 animals and people in order to love either. After all， we might think forcing horses into human high chairs shows the horse and the world how much we love it， but in the world of horses （and of any animal）， it only shows how much we dont.

你可能错过了上周的视频，在视频中一匹迷你马在高脚椅上吃一碗胡萝卜。是的，你没看错，就是高脚椅。

有些人对此感到震惊，有些人以此为乐，还有些人根本不敢相信居然有人会让一匹马坐在高脚椅上。

但也許用不着那么大惊小怪的，虽然可能看起来很荒谬，但这也许是人们越来越将动物视作自己同类和将宠物视作孩子（即坐在高脚椅上吃饭的幼儿）的必然结果。

有这种态度的人随处可见，程度从天真单纯到接近疯狂。一些人为万圣节的到来特意打扮自己的宠物，在家为它们举办生日聚会，或者为它们创建社交账号。现在还有五星级猫咪度假村，提供水疗、美食甚至四柱床。瑜伽馆目前开始提供“狗瑜伽”课程来教导狗狗下犬式。高档时髦的精品店售卖设计师专为宠物制作的内裤和比基尼。如果您的宠物需要做个美容拉皮的话，医生将对其进行整容手术。

任何一种这类现象是否值得引起关注呢？当人们把宠物当孩子养的时候，我们是否应该仅仅微笑着默许？我们又是否应该对脸书上那些“动物也是人”的页面和“我的宝宝有四个爪”等汽车保险杠贴纸视而不见呢？

不能。因为动物不是人，且宠物也不是孩子。

如果只是从基本的生物学層面上指出这个事实，应该不会引起愤怒或者攻击，但现在要涉及宠物，这就难免了。

宠物和孩子这两者之间的区别似乎出现了混淆，那些真心相信养宠物和做父母是一回事的人开始越来越多。……