Is it common practice to buy Christmas presents for your pets?
I feel it is quite disturbing to buy presents and gift them to yourself as though they are from your pet, but is the other way around equally as deranged?
Probably I should preface this by confessing that my family buys our dog Fergus a Christmas present every year.
Although, admittedly we are inconsistent in that we do generally forget his birthday. While watching a small dog chew wrapping paper off a soccer ball is delightful, this particular family ritual does raise some concerns for me. For example, to what extent does my dog really appreciate his material belongings?
I'm not entirely sure that he understands the concept of ownership, or even whether or not he would agree with the concept should he understand it.
In fact, I am pretty certain that ownership is a bit of a grey area with Fergus, a dog that routinely steals socks and underwear and hides them in his basket.
Furthermore, what can an attractive ball really do for an animal that will chase anything you throw for him? If I'm uncertain about the validity of giving presents to my dog then I am equally as ambivalent about treating the other animals in my life with anything other than edible items.
Grown cats refuse to give toys attention for any longer than five minutes, and my rats will literally destroy anything within nibbling distance.
With a few small mental leaps, the destruction of goods brings to mind the question of aesthetics. Humans, unlike most other animals, are positively consumed by aesthetic desire.
It's all very well to buy your colour-blind cat an elaborate collar as a token of affection; she's hardly going to thank you for it.
Not only are you clipping something irritating around her neck, but she also can't even appreciate how the colour complements her coat. Likewise, your goldfish might enjoy bumping against that new plastic plant but he's hardly going to dig the new ambiance it brings to his bowl.
Gifts are a funny thing. They are ultimately unnecessary and yet to me they seem quite a genuine and pleasant means of expressing affection and appreciation.
Though I'm sure cats, dogs and rats are not actively trying to improve my quality of life, I sure do appreciate their presence and how else am I to communicate that to them?
I can only feed the rats so many peas before they actually start to turn green, and blinking very slowly at my cat is becoming embarrassing for both of us.
All practicality aside, pets have a tendency to become a part of the family and it seems to be tradition to give gifts to family at Christmas time.
Maybe some people, myself and my family included, have an underlying fear our furry creatures will feel hurt and left out if they don't get a parcel under the tree.
My flatmate (always full of useful zoological facts) would probably tell me off for anthropomorphising my pets by reminding me that we've no scientific cause to believe they experience emotion in the same way as people. To this particular reminder I turn up my nose.
I, personally, however absurd it might be, live in fear of offending those of a different species with whom I share a home.
And so, this Christmas it seems likely that Fergus will get another ball, the cats will end up with some sort of carcass, and my rats will get another bowl of minted peas and maybe a cardboard box or two to destroy.
Millie Lovelock is a Dunedin student.
