During this shelter-in-place period, we
could easily occupy ourselves with thoughts of Covid-19 and its fallout on our
health, plans, jobs and finances because as the virus spreads, so do the
reasons for brooding, worry, fear, anger.
But on some level, we must think of
other things; we must think positive – which will help us feel
more positive, or as the poet lamented, “Life must go on; I forget just why.”
One major “just why” for thinking positively
is animals -- both wildlife and pets. They
can’t assure their own welfare and must count wholly on us.
By now we refer to Asian wet markets as a source
of zoonotic infectious diseases – those spreading from animals to humans –
because of the unconscionable ways humans treat animals in such places: live wild
animals kept in squalid conditions until selected for slaughter and human
consumption.
 |
| Vervet |
After they’re butchered on the spot, more
live animals replace them, developing chains of infection in the process. Deforestation and destruction of habitats,
along with factory farming, are other man-made situations that invite zoonotic
infectious diseases. That’s why we can
count on more plagues like Covid-19 unless we change the ways we treat wild
animals.
(I expect there will be much to come here on this topic.)
Then there are our pets.
At least we needn’t worry about catching zoonotic infectious diseases from them. They’re the ones who should be worried, since it’s recently been seen that zoo tigers and pet cats can test positive for the coronavirus, which, no argument, they caught from people, most likely, “their people.”
But don’t worry about catching Covid-19 from
pets. There’s no evidence pets can
transmit it to humans. In fact, humans
are a much greater risk to humans than animals are.
The best way you can care for your pets is
to keep yourself healthy and sheltered from other people and the
coronavirus, so you keep your pets healthy.
Sure,
walk your dog. Just don’t let other
people pet your dog and don’t pet theirs. If you’re sick, stay as far away as
possible from pets. If a surrogate caretaker
isn’t possible, at least wash hands thoroughly before and after interacting
with pets and wear a mask. Avoid
cuddling, kissing and sleeping with pets.
Pets during pandemic
Our cats, Harry and Billy, have taken to
sleeping on our bed with us lately. One
of them is doing more whining and sticking with us, while the other seems to
relish being in his blankety cat-caves more than usual.
Apparently, such different behaviors are
normal in times like these, I’ve read. Seeing
much more of their people than usual, some pets may also be losing their personal
spaces and having their own routines interrupted. They could also be “internalizing some of the
anxious signals from their owners.”
Pet
owners are advised to be consistent about meal and play times, and walks. And to plan now for pets’ comfort when the
lockdown ends and people aren’t at home day and night. That transition should be gradual.
a blog-post echo
This
is part reinforcement of what’s already been said here and part personal pride.
I was elated to read an opinion column
in the NYTimes earlier this month that made many of the same points I made
here in a blog post-editorial weeks before. In order of appearance, here’s the post:
.
. . and here’s the NYT column:
just for fun:
#
I hope you’ll comment on this post. Just go to 1moreonce.blogspot.com.
Love the photos and the blog!
ReplyDeleteGood thoughts on how our animals now have us all the time, but won't when we go back to work. Important to think about!
ReplyDeletethank you both for reading & commenting, and yes, on the needed gradualism w/ pets after quarantines end: another possible problem may be those who then no longer feel they have enough time for foster pets or those adopted during this period.
ReplyDelete