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We vegans ask the world to give up the pleasure of eating meat for the greater good, but are we willing to give up our love of pets for the same?

In This Episode

Nichole talks Callie through the incendiary concept that owning pets is a form of speciesism – a concept that Nichole vehemently disagreed with when she first heard it but over time has come to accept and understand. We love our pets, vegans especially, and it can be shocking to think that with everything we do to do right, that we might still be doing something wrong when it comes to animals. While there are many animals right now that need and deserve good homes, the concept of pet ownership, the idea that domesticated animals should be continued to be brought into existence so that we can take them as companions, is still trading an animal’s life for our pleasure. Some pets seem very happy with the trade off, there’s no denying that many pets love their owners and would stay if given the choice. But, they are not really given the choice. Pets don’t have the agency to leave, or to follow many of their natural instincts. Continuing this train of thought, Nichole and Callie briefly touch on all forms of domesticated animals, including livestock, and “rescuing” species from extinction by locking them in cages or safaris. A polarizing topic, for sure. We hope that you will listen with an open mind and we’d love to hear your feedback on this topic!