Colleague compares pet death to relative

[ItsNotTheSame]

So long story short... my mum passed away a few months ago. Very sudden & unexpected, happened at home when she was alone and she was found there. Paramedics pronounced her dead on the scene. No chance to say goodbye obviously very shocking and caused me a lot of issues with anxiety and depression etc since while trying to come to terms with this. She was only in her early 50s and no illnesses before this as far as we knew.

Anyway, I’m back at work and have been for a couple of months now. My colleague has recently had a family pet put to sleep due to illness. Was working with said colleague when she made a comment to me along the lines of how upset she was and said I must know how she feels as it’s the same as my mum.

This really annoyed me and I told her in no uncertain terms that this is not the same and I walked away feeling angry / upset. I now feel a bit bad that maybe I’ve over reacted and been over sensitive. So opinions please.... Aibu?

I think @moussemoose was quite rightly taking the piss out of @hunnidbands with her comment

@babysharksmummy I agree!

Sorry that should've been @Strongmummy

most people would consider humanity superior

Surely it very much depends on how you define superior?

Are we dominating the planet? Yes.

The morally superior species? Debatable. Look at how as a species we treat other animals (humans are responsible for more extinctions that any other animal that’s ever existed by a massive margin, we farm and slaughter intelligent and emotional animals for food, we kill for fun, we pollute and destroy their habitats) not to mention how humans treat each other. As a species I think we’d rank pretty low.

Physically? We’re not the fastest, we don’t have the best physical senses. We don’t live the longest.

Intelligence? Debatable. We’re knowingly destroying our own planet despite having nowhere else to go. Not the most intelligent thing to do.

If you google “are humans superior” you’ll see many debates and opinions on both sides so it’s certainly not a clear cut thing.

If you mean are all individual humans worth more than all other animals, I think you’d get different answers to. For eg, if people had to vote to chose whether to save a black rhino or Ian Huntley I don’t think Huntley would win.

If it was a black rhino vs random human, there would probably be a lot more votes for the human.

We’ve dominated the planet BECAUSE we are superior intellectually!!!!

And animals don’t have a sense of morality. stop pretending they’re “good”, “kind” etc..... that’s just putting human traits on animals. Even higher primates will kill their own kids with impunity and throw shit about. Animals are more basic than humans. That’s fact.

Do I love my cat? Yes. Does he love me? No idea. He cuddles up to and seems to enjoy hanging out with me, but I’m warm and feed him. If it was a toss up between saving my cat and letting a human die (one I’d never met) my cat would get it I’m afraid on the basis I couldn’t live with myself for allowing a human to die!

If your cat died, would you eat it (assuming a non emergency situation)?
If you died, would you cat eat you (assuming any situation really)?

Animals don't have sentiment. (The cat would eat you, no worries).

There really is no way you can convince most people (even non-religious people) that humans are not superior to other animals. We just got lucky (though that luck is running out, seeing as we are busily destroying our home). Nothing more, nothing less.

So when you say superior, you just mean intellectually superior. We probably are that. Superior intelligence does not equate to superior worth in my opinion.

If someone’s IQ is higher than someone else would you considere them “superior” to the other person and that their life would be worth more? I suspect not.

Also I didn’t say animals are good or kind or put human traits on them, just that humans as a species aren’t superior morally.

Some animals kill for fun, but most don’t.

No other animals are considered a Mass Extinction Event.

And looking at morality doesn’t it make it so much worse that we’re probably the only morally aware species and yet are not the most moral species?

Animals don't have sentiment.

Perhaps peruse somis scientific studies that prove to the contrary?

Some not somis!

Animals don't have ANY morality. You need metacognition for that.

Which animals don't.

@heckypecky ALL humans have equal worth regardless of intelligence , race, colour, creed, ability etc... Denying that is incredibly dangerous and absolutely wrong.

ALL humans are superior to animals. That us both my view and it’s enshrined in law as animals don’t have legal rights.

And to ensure this doesn’t get circular, they don’t have legal rights because they aren’t human and therefore can’t make laws as they can’t read, write, form arguments, discuss complex issues.

It is imperative on humanity that we take care of animals and respect them, but they are not equal as they can’t be

ALL humans are superior to animals.

That’s certainly not everyone’s view. When you see news stories about poachers who have been killed by their intended target most comments don’t say “oh no a HUMAN died, I wish it had been the elephant.” In fact most comments think it served them right.

I don’t think a child abuser is superior in any definable way to my cat. Apart from being superior at being a scumbag piece of shit.

ALL humans have equal worth regardless of intelligence , race, colour, creed, ability etc... Denying that is incredibly dangerous and absolutely wrong.

Exactly my point. I’m saying intelligence doesn’t equal worth, which you’ve just agreed with. Therefore you can’t use intelligence as a way to rate worth. Therefore you can’t say humans are superior because they’re more intelligent.

@heckypecky, some humans are arseholes and some are plain evil. Is it a shame when they die, no. However, when they were born their life was more important and valuable than that of an animal.

And surely you can see that animals are not vaguely comparable to a human’s coginituve ability. We’re a more evolved species. Of course we’re superior 🙄

And animals don’t have morality. That’s a human concept. Therefore they can’t be morally superior as they have no idea what morality is .

I’m not denying that we probably have more advanced cognitive ability. But in your own post you said intelligent doesn’t equal worth.

Koko this gorilla was able to use over 2000 signs and had an IQ of 70-90. By your logic she would be cognitively superior to some humans so would her life be worth more to you? Or does being cognitively superior only count if you’re human?

In South Africa think poachers get shot so clearly the lives of the rhinos are considered to be more valuable.
Rightly so, they are now almost extinct unlike criminals who are far from an endangered species.

It's also ludicrous to suggest that animals don't feel emotions. Their emotional lives are in fact proving to be far more complex than originally thought.

That should say rhino poachers. Dickhead phone.

So for you humans are morally superior in a category which only includes humans as other animals can’t be considered?

Go humans. What an achievement!

In South Africa think poachers get shot so clearly the lives of the rhinos are considered to be more valuable.

Great point.

In America there is also the same penalty for killing a police dog as a police officer. So not all laws say human life is superior.

I’m saying that animals have no concept of morality. it is you (as a human) who is putting that trait on them. Animals wouldn’t have a clue what you’re talking about. Indeed, they wouldn’t understand this argument. Therefore they’re not morally superior as you suggest as morality doesn’t exist for them. Of course animals have emotions, they feel pain etc..etc.....No one is denying that and that’s why it’s so horrific when animals are hurt.

I’ve said that we aren’t morally superior that non human animals.

In what ways as a species would you say that we morally superior?

Understanding the concept of morality doesn’t make a being morally superior in and of itself.

Grief is grief...... I have sat alongside many clients who have lost people in tragic circumstances......child death, murders etc...

People are attached to their animals....

The losses are not the same

If anyone felt more distraught at the death of their dog over the death of their child. Of be worried over their processing of their losses.