To find people who dislike animals a bit cold in general

[Tinhatattheready]

Yes it’s probably goady. Yes I’ve made an apt name change but...

Honestly - anyone I’ve ever met who’s “not an animal person” always seems to be a bit... off.

I’m not talking about those who are say scared of dogs, or a bit mistrustful of cats. I mean those who are very much “it’s just an animal” (and no I don’t include farmers in this either.

I know plenty of people who are nervous of animals and they’re lovely / but have known maybe around 3 people who really are jist “who cares” and they are not so nice.

Just a bit of introspection maybe, you can’t think that others are cold for not being animal lovers when you can’t really call yourself one 🤷‍♀️

*People who see a baby penguin, kitten or puppy and say "meh" Does it have to be a baby animal? I mean I wouldn't be oohing and aahing over a baby animal. I might think it was quite sweet.

I wouldn't want to own it.

@Porcupineinwaiting

As do humans.

@ALongHardWinter the second are abhorrent. It’s the first category I find cold. Those who are very “I don’t get why you’re upset that a dog/cat whatever died” or “ewww how can you stand a muddy dog at on you”.

Completely understand that people may not want this for themselves but perhaps the lack of understanding of others is cold.

@Arrivederla

Well, I'm not wild about animals although I don't hate them.

In my experience, people who are absolutely obsessed with animals can be quite odd. For example, one of my ex-neighbours once told me that if she saw a kitten and a baby abandoned by the side of the road she would stop for the kitten first... she was a very strange person.

Of course there are loads of people who are very fond of animals who are lovely and people who don't particularly like them are equally lovely. Maybe the two extremes should be avoided?

But yes, basically YABU op.

My friend is the same, upset the NHS don't provide healthcare to animals and thinks she loves her dog more than she would a child.

I like animals, would never hurt one but don't consider myself an "animal lover" as such.

My sister hates all animals. So for her, yes I would agree with that statement. Mind you, she barely shrugged when Bambi's mum got shot or when Mufasa was caught in the stampede. She's a very cold woman.

@HouchinBawbags

My sister hates all animals. So for her, yes I would agree with that statement. Mind you, she barely shrugged when Bambi's mum got shot or when Mufasa was caught in the stampede. She's a very cold woman.

I'm not cold at all, but I can't imagine getting upset by those things because they're just cartoons on a screen.

I feel the same about people who are indifferent to children. I mean, obviously I know kids can be really annoying and I'm not pretending I like them all, but people who openly state that they're not into children are generally a bit off (they're often obsessed with animals too).

By which I mean I can't imagine me getting upset by those things. Not that I can't imagine other people being upset.

I wouldn’t care about Mufasa either, it’s a cartoon.

I think the answers posted are showing that this is going to come down to definitions. One person's 'indifference to owning a pet' is another person's 'dislikes animals' which someone else interprets as 'being capable of cruelty towards animals'.

I think there's possibly a link between how someone feels about animals and personality types (e.g I believe a few studies suggest cat owners are in general more independent than dog owners) but that shouldn't be confused with any kind of value judgement as to one being better than another.

Cruelty is a different matter. There's a reason it's a key question in risk assessment for domestic abuse or when identifying sociopathic tendencies. It often starts as a lack of empathy, progressing to neglect and then actively mistreating animals. Then moves on to people.

Studies correlate empathy in children with pet ownership too. Which isn't to say it's cause and effect.

So when someone says they don't like animals I don't read anything into it by itself but set alongside other behaviours it can be revealing.

@isabellerossignol sorry but tbh anyone who wasn’t a bit moved by those I’d find cold. Same as anyone who isn’t a bit tears at say Sophie’s choice or hotel Rwanda.

How the hell could you compare those films to Bambi and The Lion King 😱😱 wtf

I've always thought that people who love animals more than humans pefer to hang out with creatures who don't argue with them

And for those who are saying about children - so like you say ignore a crying child on their own in the park looking like they’d maybe lost their mum? No like me, you’d go and check they were ok and call appropriate authorities? If you would t do similar for a dog I find you a bit cold.

Not saying take them home, jist not “oh it’s just a dog”

@PablosHoney my point is about being moved by what is essentially “television”.

[quote Tinhatattheready]@isabellerossignol sorry but tbh anyone who wasn’t a bit moved by those I’d find cold. Same as anyone who isn’t a bit tears at say Sophie’s choice or hotel Rwanda.[/quote]
Seriously? They're cartoons! Fictional animals with fictional human feelings. They're not even vaguely comparable to films about genocide, which actually happened in real life to real people, with hopes and dreams and fears and people they loved and who loved them.

I'm beyond shocked that people get upset about fictional characters in cartoons.

“Op, your example; Someone who doesn't understand a person would be upset if their pet dies

Are you describing someone you know? You're being oddly specific. I can't think of anyone who wouldn't understand that the death of a pet is sad. confused”

Some people say some weird things when your pet dies - honestly. Most people don’t whether they’re pet owners or not... but you always get one or two who’ll say something really off, like, well never mind it’s only a (whatever type of pet it is) or similar...

And I mean, I only tell people if it’s relevant - like, I’m having to cancel something or I’m a bit off. I’m not announcing it and expecting sympathy, lol.

But those things actually happened... I can’t even.

@isabellerossignol Christ don’t ever take your children to see Disney. You can berate them afterwards for getting upset about “cartoons”.

Am or a bit hypocritical, people say they are animal lovers and don't condone cruelty and yet they will eat them.

All a bit

I do tend to think that people who are indifferent to animals are a bit strange, given the evolutionary pressures on humans to find them interesting (given the effort humans went to for millennia to catch them to eat, which means knowing where to find them, and understanding how they behave).

I also think people who really don't like dogs in particular are... peculiar. Often perfectly pleasant, just... odd. For at least 20,00 years and probably for substantially longer, dogs have helped humans hunt, herd, cart their kit from place to place, guard the the camp and protect the livestock. Without them, we might not have become the dominant species that we are today.

@PablosHoney ok fair point (though animal poaching also goes on). But people cry over titanic (not the sinking of the ship, but the fictional characters) the Notebook etc.

How ridiculous, a child you can expect to be upset by a cartoon an adult how compares them to a film about genocide is something else all together, wow.