See, I really don’t think anyone in this thread does. And the people I’m talking about and, I think the OP was talking about, DO. The whole tangent that I got off on with PCapeman was an interesting hypothetical discussion, and I ejoyed it immensely, but I don’t believe for a second he thinks his pets are human, or that they’re talking to him and he has to kill hookers to appease the gods or anything. So, as tdn suggests, I’ll now knock it off.
El Cid Viscoso, excellent point.
All of this hijacking has allowed Trunk to get away with an offensive fucked up post unfortunately.
No, you wouldn’t call a dog a fish, or vice versa, that is the name of the actual species or whatever. But a person MIGHT figuratively call a fish a “fin-baby”.
Are you also a sufferer of asperger’s? Why are you having such a tough time understanding that people, when they use the simple phrase “my pets are my kids” are NOT “retitling” the pet. It is merely a phrase that, to pet owners, is a figurative statement on how the pet fits into their lives, and the similar relationship it holds in their lives as compared to those who have kids.
As in a lot of phrases and sayings in our language, it is effective as a shorthand way of saying what we mean. Would you prefer a two paragraph explanation each and every time someone referred to their pets?
Sheesh woman, you is STUUUBOrn…
I mean, I am WITH you on the whole purity of the language thing, but ever since the misappropriation of “nauseous” to mean nauseated, I’ve pretty much given up. We’re not gonna win this one, the changes in language, and the massive influx of slang will march on.
Figurative.
Literal.
Look them up.
The OP was talking about posters in an IMHO thread. I don’t think those posters really DO think their pets are children either. It was pointed out to the OP that these people are speaking metaphorically, however he refused to accept that.
The sad fact is that the OP really was being a dick. You aren’t, but the OP was.
You might want to re-read the OP. He’s talking about people who refer to their pets as their kids, in any context. Not just the crazies who think their pets really are people. Of course, Trunk’s a gigantic asshole in general, so that’s not really surprising, but if you’re not familiar with him, I don’t blame you for taking a more generous read from his post.
blinks
Seriously? Does that go for us pitiful idiots who call our cars our babies too? I mean, it’s a really nice car.
I’m not sure. Sometimes I delude myself by looking at this kind of stuff as “positive reinforcement.” Dogs are good at being dogs. Occasionally humans need to be reminded of this. 
You’re right. As long as he or she is not abused, I’m much happier.
I just tend to think people miss out on so much brilliance when they stop letting a dog be a dog!
Ah, but how do you know they haven’t?
“My name is Kitty Montoya. You killed my parents. Prepare to die, BITCH!”
(Said to a female dog, of course.)
With polydactyly.
Ah well, ya know that whole “flies with sugar” versus vinegar argument. If’n someone don’t wanna hear, they LALALALA until your blue in the face. 
And of course dogs are good at being dogs, which we do need to be reminded of from time to time. Which is also true of all domesticated animals… that they used to, gulp, wild. Like me. In a former life. 
Happy moment in the Pit!! Two people on the same page! WOOHOO!
Agreed. Can you imagine how nasty life would be if someone insisted we be fence posts? Then our brilliance wouldn’t get to shine either. 
Oh, absolutely. You people are freaks.
Well, yeah. But that’s one of my best qualities.
I know I’m coming in way on down the page here, and am hesitant to post, but here goes a thought.
First off, I love animals, pets and wild creatures, and have since childhood. My parents were biologists, so we always had a houseful of critters, regular pets, and exotics. At home, and in the field, I had many opportunities to see animals, and how they live, in nature and interacting with people. Many pet deaths, then, too, from normal lives lead to rather grisly circumstance. We’d mourn and have burying ceremony in the backyard, sad, because we loved and appreciated their lives.
Being raised by biologists, we appreciated animals not as humans, but for their own selves; had attachments even to the Tarantulas and Giant Toads from S.America, gave them names and were sad when they passed. All those critters enriched my view of the world, to see how all creatures have rather elaborate lives, and aren’t mere dumb ciphers .
As a child, that love towards animals was pure; appreciating them, learning how to care for them, and see them thrive. I don’t anthromorphosize, that would be a great disservice to animals. I do find it amazing, touching, and beautiful that human beings can love other beings unlike themselves. I don’t think it’s a function of loneliness, but of extending one’s heart to another being; amazing that those interspecies bonds happen. They really are not well-understood by those who haven’t spent the time with animals.
In terms of the OP, it’s angst-causing that people refer to their pets as their “kids”. I’ve seen plenty of people who do this, and it makes me uneasy because I think that animals ought to have their appreciation for who they are, and be given the chance to live a good life according to their natural needs. But, soft heart that I got dealt, I also see it as sweetly amazing that people truly feel love for other species. It’s really a magnificent human trait if you think about it.
Hope that this helps Trunk see that people who appreciate animals are not one-dimensionally whacked.
Shit, I drive a '76 CJ-7 named Chicory and occasionally, when her oil pressure suddenly drops, I call her “baby.” There’s sometimes stroking involved and I’ll tell you my wife has never been jealous. Generally because she’d be as stranded as the Blue Dog and me.
Sorry, I was about to be away from any computers and felt like I had to say something. 
Personally, I don’t like fish as a pet because all you do is feed them and watch them swim. However, the fact that I am not capable of bonding with a fish in the same way as I can with a dog doesn’t mean that others aren’t.
Again, the question is not whether a bond with a pet can change or become stronger over time but if a bond similar to one between a parent and their child can exist in the first place.
Whodathunkit?
A sane, civilized, considered Great Debate broke out in the Pit.
Maureen, I enjoyed the discussion too. Thank you.
I cannot agree more. See my post re working dogs upthread.
I mentioned this on page one. This is a classic example–“they don’t like what I do, so there is something not so right about them.”
The irony here is that I like dogs–well, except my mom’s poorly trained beasts. I get along fine with dogs-I just don’t want one for myself or my family.
I get that some people refer to their dogs as kids–I just don’t share the attitude that it is cute or appropriate. I don’t think of pets as kids or that they should be on the same plane (level?) as kids. What is acceptable on a personal level gets a bit strange on a more generalized level, IMO. I think it’s obvious from this thread that there are alot of people who disagree.
Beautifully said. Again, the working dogs I mentioned come to my mind. Or a horse-when horse and rider almost do a mind meld thing. But the horse is appreciated for being a horse, not for being a kid.
I think we shall have to agree to disagree here, over all. It was a very interesting discussion. I don’t name my cars either, or my body parts, but have it, if desired! (I meant name YOUR body parts and car–not mine! ).
My dogs are well-behaved, well taken care of, and obedient. They are also working dogs (S & R). That said, I love my dogs… well since we don’t have a word for it… like they are my kids; but not. I know they are dogs, I know they aren’t people, but I love them somewhere between they way I love my my mom, and they way I love my friends. Less than the former, but more than the latter.
I think the problem you’re having is that there really isn’t a proper term for the way childless people feel about their pets. We know they aren’t people, but they are one of the most important things in our lives.
But you don’t get it. You think that your sister’s dog should be tied up in the back yard, or left to sit in a car, neither which are safe for the dog, and yet you think she’s being neurotic. You ascribe feelings to dog owners which we may not have, because of your own suspicions.
Holy crap. 6 pages in 12 hours.
And the google ad at the bottom of this page made me spurt coke through my nose after el’s comment and my rejoinder about teddy bears:
Heh. Funnily enough, I thought that was the worst and stupidest paragraph in an otherwise beautiful post.