Animals vs humans

[fifi669]

AIBU to think if faced with choosing a pet over a human (even if a stranger), you should choose the human?

The idea was brought up in another thread and put in life or death situation. Building on fire contains your pet and a stranger. You could only save one, who would it be?

I had a dog, Ralph, I cried my heart out when he died 3 years ago. The only dog I wasn't scared of! But I can't imagine leaving a person to die instead, no matter how my heart would break.

I'm a nanny Trish.

But before you start, I've said all the way through that I would save any child over my dog.

An adult who has read a thread full of people saying how important their dog is to them and would murder it out of spite? Not so much.

We'll if it wasn't for nasty people we wouldn't need the animal charities. People who died or went into nursing homes aside.

Only fair people pay to help the animals that people helped harm in the first place.

Is it just dogs? How about child or rat?

Would people save their own child or their dog?

Curlew, nobody would ever pick their animal over their child - you seem obsessed over this. The scenario is about choosing a pet over a random adult, not a child, and certainly not their own child.

"I'd kill the dog."

OK, as we seem to be rabid for hypotheticals here: Pianodoodle, believing it's justified, kills my dog, who has a very legitimate job protecting our home and has often chased away those who shouldn't be there. As a result, our home is vulnerable, I am attacked and killed. Surely my husband then has the right to kill you, piano (same goes to curlew too, I suppose)? What with you being responsible for my death and all.

And perhaps this energy spent killing the dogs of those who didn't rescue your child would be better spent trying to find who set the fire in the first place.

They killed your children. Not the person risking their life I go in and rescue who he could.

Your pet or the cousin you see once a year????

Woah woah woah. I go away for a little while and when i come back people are killing children and cousins and each other.

Peace and love folks, peace and love.

It is a HYPOTHETICAL question meant to stimulate discussion. It is not actually for real. The point is that no-one knows what they would do unless they were in that position and i really hope it never happens to any of us.

How old is this hypothetical cousin fifi ??

The cousin thing is as you aren't actually close to them, not as close as the pet you see and enjoy everyday.... But they are human and they are family

Well as it was 99% agreed children before pets, any adult age

OK,fifi, the cousin I only see once a year is that by choice, both of ours. She's a hideous monster inside and out and I don't give a shit where or how she dies as the world will be a richer place without her. In case I'm not clear enough, in that particular hypothetical, it's still the dog. The other cousins I see more than once a year because I like them, and they don't count in this situation.

Goes right back to my original point: an animal has never hurt me. Humans in real life have bullied me, raped me, belittled me. Humans on this thread have expressed a desire to kill my companions, the lights of my life.

Why would I let the only things I live for die to save one of you?

Based on 3 of my cousins who I genuinely do only see once a year, I would still save my cats

Lily. There have insults from both sides. I said I'd bow out earlier and couldn't resist a peek. Definitely going now. I've not heard anything to change my stance and I think the arguments were exhausted a long time ago.

If anyone sees me on this thread again, tell me to bugger off.

P.S. the guide dogs are one of the richest charities in the country. I except they'll manage without my modest contributions.

What Gileswithachainsaw said. Fifi669, you clearly are of the mind that blood is thicker than water, family blood must always come first. I have some right shits in my family from a wife & child beating father to peado brothers, uncles & cousins! So you know what? Yes is my answer to your question! I won't repeat what has been said by many other dog savers again but instead will repeat that I agree with what Gileswithachainsaw so succinctly put. Who would you save? Your child or a stranger? And I shall note that I would be more concerned with my own grief than that of some mythical strangers families grief. Right, off to bark at leaves again.

Not read all way through but to note if or when it comes up:
Always pick up after dog
Always prevent dog jumping up
Never say he'll only lick you to death but instead offer to hold my dog facing away from person for them to stroke...... many frightened kids have wanted this
I always inform kids of the right way to approach dogs & what to do should one run towards/jump up at them

Some dog owners don't do the above.... I really hate them.
Some humans drink & drive, some do drugs, some beat their wives/husbands/kids & strangers & Lil old people...... some are rapist, peados, some are just downright antisocial, some believe they are superior, some believe others should agree to their viewpoint & anyone who does not is evil, some are just intolerant. Should we really tar all people with the same brush? Because going by what I've just pointed out we should be willing to allow any human to burn because there are some humans out there that are either downright bad - hang the lot of em! Some dog owners are bad so condemn the lot of them. Yep a sensible argument! And of course it's the fucking dogs fault that they have arseholes for humans!

Now, I'm going to bark at some leaves while my dog looks at me like I'm mad. Because it makes way more sense than reading anything more from zealots! Have fun. Try not to set your homes on fire.

However, the original post didn't mention cousins, children (multiple or just one) or even plumbers. The question was about your own pet and a stranger, and some of those who chose to save the stranger indulged in some particularly self-righteous insult slinging at those who chose their own pet. Most of us in that position were pretty restrained, I feel, in the face of being dubbed reprehensible and poor excuses for human beings. The outraged human savers were about as admirable in their position as those desperately trying to convert non-believers to their own religion by lobbing bombs, we dog savers were peaceful little Jains, hoping to quietly go about our business. Sigh.

My cousins are all much bigger than me. I'd stand zero chance of dragging or lifting to safety. I'd tie a dog to them though and so my very best.

"Curlew, nobody would ever pick their animal over their child - you seem obsessed over this."

I thought we were talking about lives being of equal value. So why wouldn't you choose your dog over your child?

Opinions are like arseholes, everyone has one but some of the posts in this thread are downright nasty. How dare anyone tell a poster they need professional help because they value their dog's life so highly?! It's verging into dangerous territory, where you might as well starting questioning their sanity. So, please fuck off with the armchair psychology. Debating is fine but that is a low blow.

My DD and i have just both gone to look at the dog sleeping in the kitchen, looked at each other and simultaneously said "yup, save the dog!"

I love her, she is real, she is a living creature who shares her life with me.
Who is this stranger? I have no emotional connection to them. They are not real.

Perhaps in real life i would save the stranger but in this hypothetical world my dog will always win.

"There have insults from both sides"

We got very far into the thread before the defensive side started throwing it back. The dog savers were mostly forced into defending themselves, with the human savers telling us we were awful. I've been told how wrong my feelings and I as a human being are on a number of occasions here, but I haven't tried to convince anyone doing that to save my dog over anyone else. That's up to them and I have not tried to persuade them otherwise. Two people believe I deserve to have my beloved companion killed for not sharing their belief system! Again, I know who came out of this argument best.

curlew - I personally haven't said that I think lives are equal, but I understand your reasoning for the question now. It's a good point you raise then, although I still can't imagine anyone choosing their pet over their child. Well, I'd hope not anyway

I have no cousins. Dog wins

I thought we were talking about lives being of equal value. So why wouldn't you choose your dog over your child?

I have said I don't automatically value human life above an animals. I'm not saying that my care for animals is equal to that of humans. It's about the emotional bond. I have a strong bond with my dog, I do not have a strong bond with a stranger. Therefore, I would save the dog and not the stranger.

If someone has a stronger bond with their child than their dog I would imagine that they would save the child.