[Gpdd] misc--pet peeve

[Deb Ganley]

People talk about the South American thing about cavies as food because that's the only thing they know about them.  The world at large is very ignorant of anything piggie. Some countries eat dogs & cats--but if we mentioned that to a dog or cat person, we'd be looked at as insensitive--but it's ok for non-piggie people to tell us the same thing & we're not supposed to react.  I'm not a proponent of school pigs, but you seem to provide your's with the best & are intent on educating the public.  Good for you!

I lost my first pig, Potter, this past November.  I couldn't  talk about her for 2 months without breaking down crying.  People don't realize that piggies have personalities & are members of the family, not throw-away pets.  I lost a much-loved cat years ago (before I got into piggies) & had some idiot immediately ask me "are you going to replace him?" like he could ever be "replaced."   (I had someone ask me the same thing when Potter passed away & I shocked them by busting out crying!)  A month later, my grandmother passed away & the same woman expressed her condolences.  I very nicely thanked her & said "& no, I'm not replacing her either!"  She knew exactly what I meant--you had to see the look on her face, it was priceless!  

Unfortunately, there are a lot of ignorant & insensitive people in the world & you just have to grit your teeth & consider the source.  Bill Engvall (Redneck Comedy Tour on Comedy Central) does a whole thing about how stupid people should have to wear a sign stating that they're ignorant--he'll cite examples & his tag line is  "Here's your sign."  If I had my way, we could hand out signs like that with little piggie outlines on them--but they just wouldn't get it anyway.

Deb, Molly, Emma, Winnie & Lily (& Potter, always with us)