Ben Madilynn
In a series of essays, New York’s latest cover story explored some ethical questions that many animal lovers might not have considered about their furry, feathered, and finned companions. Reader amason1108 commented, “I’m sorry but this entire ‘concept’ issue makes me queasy … If you as a human are incapable of imagining what your pet might be thinking or missing, you really should not have a pet.” The accompanying photos by Charlie Engman featured humans in creature prosthetics, including the cover image of a chimerical “cat” gazing longingly out a window. “What in the Jellicle tribe is this cover?” asked @JordanPfot, while @mediumsizemeech said, “Surely they could have just used a photo of an actual cat?!” Emmaleah.shp reasoned, “Unpopular opinion (apparently): I think the whole point of this cover is that it’s supposed to make us feel uncomfortable.” On Instagram, jenboudin prophesied, “You can’t say shit about pets (or any animals, really) online, people go bonkers!!!! You can post a parenting tip that’s like ‘dip your kid in cyanide’ and it will cause a mild stir, say ‘some dogs like leashes’ and you’re gonna get 5,000 irate comments. It’s wild.”
The anonymous essay “Why Did I Stop Loving My Cat When I Had
a Baby?” generated outsize attention. Demi Colleen said pets “are not an experiment, test or game before having a human child. Absolutely vile.” @LauraEatsVeg tweeted, “Imagine if she has a second kid & they’re easier to raise than the first. Will she show animosity toward the eldest? Will she neglect them?” @loveologian commented, “No one group has a monopoly on cruelty, but there is something specifically millennial-white-woman about whatever this trend is … Honesty as absolution? this idea that being as blunt as possible about your horribleness somehow absolves you of it?” @chloecuckoo wrote, “i’m being very serious when i say here that if you’re going to pay this woman for her story, you have an ethical responsibility as a publication to try to intervene.” New York later added a note to the article clarifying that editors had confirmed the cat’s welfare prior to publication. Some readers were unconvinced. Liz Arcury emailed, “Letting Lucky remain in that home when you have the means to get him out … is being an accessory to animal abuse, plain and simple,” and questioned the cat’s safety: “How was it confirmed? … Was there time-stamped photo/video evidence you saw of him being treated well? Have you seen vet records? What are we referring to here exactly?” Other commenters were more sympathetic. Maira Garcia tweeted, “There’s been a lot of discourse on this but the truth is it happens a lot and no one talks about it because of the reaction to it.” In Slate, editor Jeremy Stahl called out “the real villain” of such stories: “It’s not these authors who are the bad guys, but rather their partners, the person in the relationship who is also adjusting to life as a new parent but not recovering from a pregnancy and childbirth.”
Also in the series, Madeline Leung Coleman wrote about euthanasia. “I appreciate this article,” commented maggie206. “My cat Gladys was diagnosed with an incurable cancer last year. We were offered the option of radiation to reduce the tumor, which may extend her life … We decided to just do comfort care. A year later she’s still her same silly, purry self and doing really well on an anti-inflammatory and some Chinese herbs. Sometimes I feel like we ‘should’ do more to extend her life even more, but this article is a good reminder that she doesn’t have any concept of the future, and I’m glad we’re just making her ‘present’ as comfortable as possible.” Rositaguzman noted, “For me, the elephant in the room are the outrageous fees that vets charge … Vets are willing to probe just how far pet owners are willing to go with expensive treatments. They prey on the gray area of what is sensible to do to an animal and potential guilt.” Muntum wrote, “increasingly, it seems, we’re imposing human neuroses
including our fear of death — onto animals. People need to handle their own crazy, and leave animals out of it. If you can’t handle your big feelings … and live in a way that allows your pet to behave like an animal rather than requiring them to be your handbag–dwelling bestie, don’t co-habitat with animals.” And njmich said the cats they have put down “always made it easy for me. Without words, they told me when it was ‘the day,’ I did not hesitate one minute.”
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