Respect is the combination of involvement and keeping distanceWhen there is a toddler in the house, crawling around, the parents are vigilant. Little children open cupboards, put everything they encounter into their mouths, etc... Beyond fear and uncertainty, children do not hesitate to explore the space around them. Similarly, a pet that is crawling or flying around does not have much respect for the furniture of its house owner. A child is able to learn how to behave, but for a pet, this is only achieved through punishment. That means that punishment becomes a negative incentive for "not giving respect” to the surrounding things. On this site respect is defined by the right combination of being involved ("love”)
and keeping an appropriate distance ("freedom”): you are allowed
to take a close look, but you are not allowed to touch. Adults are sometimes
not very precise in how they define respect, making it difficult for little children
to cooperate with them. Parents expect their children to interpret
their raised voices as a proclamation to "show a little respect!” |
Man is the most forceful living creature on earth. Without forcing boundaries upon him/herself or upon farms, there would not be enough space within which to live. Both humans and animals do not take rules for granted. In some cases it's permitted to force respect upon others. In the old days respect was won by means of friendly fights (games). For animals this is still the way to discover who will be the future leader of the pack and who will be more submissive. When an animal shows its weakness to another, lower in rank, the lower animal seeks to take over a higher position. So, force and power are only temporary means to receive respect and call for subversive action whenever possible. It would be a good thing if humans spontaneously paid due respect to animals. Respect should lead to a healthy equilibrium, which is more than the result of two equal countering forces (love and freedom). It would be even better if humans were motivated to seek balance by positive rather than economical incentives. Therefore it is important that people develop from within (themselves) the right compassion for everything alive. That is a positive image of human motivation, in which one should not follow blindly. It will not automatically work out fine when everyone is held responsible for the proper way of showing respect. Being afraid of distrust is rather a form of indifference than of being concerned.
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People love pets, but what is the nature of their affection?Further, people like to approach wild animals to get a better look by using binoculars to get as close as possible. If you come too close, however, wild animals become disturbed and flee. Except during the time that they breed, this is not a sin. Some people choose to have a pet as companions at all times, a fairly egoistic motivation to enjoy the existence of other creatures. Cats and dogs don't mind however, as they have become accustomed to living in human vicinity for a very long time. |
Some people do not see the difference between loving animals and keeping themMixing up these concepts shows that some pet owners do not have any clue of what respect really means. An animal has the right to behave naturally and does not depend upon human affection (for its well being?). Of course man has the obligation to take care of the physiological needs of the captured animal and certainly, the animal will show signs of appreciation. But that is not affection. It certainly is not real love, not even surrogate love. |