The question of how we make empathy universal isn’t the vapid question. Yours that I was responding to was.

Either way, if women can manage the hit in the balls empathy, surely you can figure this out, too, without a step-by-step pictorial diagram and someone to hold your hand.

If I knew how to make everyone empathetic we wouldn’t even need to be discussing this in the first place. What a vapid question.

The same way we trust that it’s really painful for men to get kicked in the junk without having to experience it ourselves.

There are lots of dogs and cats who crave variety in their diets, too. Like humans, it’s a behavioral thing rather than a nutritional necessity. My shepherd will simply stop eating regularly unless I vary her diet. I usually have three or so options I rotate through to keep her interested in eating. Lots of people add toppers and mix-ins when they have dogs like mine, but I find that only increases food rejection, as smart pups learn to hold out until we sweeten the deal enough.

I worked for a pet food manufacturer, and it amazed me what customers would do to try to entice their picky pets to eat. One guy was giving his dog lasagna, and he was shocked that his dog didn’t want to eat kibble anymore. Imagine that.

Nah, fuck you for pretending to have the moral high ground in this comment while openly saying you’re just in it for free dog food in others. This commenter is absolutely correct in calling you out for trying to abuse a program meant to aid the disabled, as people like you who take unnecessary advantage harm the future availability of these kinds of programs. Especially when pet food assistance programs are a thing.

As someone who’s fostered and trained both service dogs and ESAs, this is highly offensive. These designations are meant to help people with disabilities, not those who have financial needs. As others have already pointed out, abuse of the ESA designation has had serious negative impacts on service dog handlers. There are also many people out there with serious need for an ESA, and if others keep abusing this lax system for frivolous reasons, eventually rules are going to be in place that will inevitably hurt those with actual health needs.

If your roommate needs financial assistance feeding their dog, there are social services available to help with this. Many communities offer pet food pantries, and there are national charities available to assist with the financial strain of keeping animals in their homes. I can send a list if that’s helpful.

Most dogs I know are wonderful and brighten even strangers’ days just by being themselves. That doesn’t make it okay to abuse safety nets put in place to help disabled people in order to make their care more affordable, though.

Yes! Throughout my life I’ve had some very special relationships with wildlife. It started when I was quite young and had a red bellied brown snake that always hung out in the same place. They were incredibly docile, and would let me carry them around in my hands for hours as I explored outside. This went on for a couple of years.

Later, I got to play foster to baby raccoons when my grandfather would find them orphaned on the farm. They were so much fun, and it was always bittersweet when it was time for them to be released.

In 2016 an injured squirrel showed up on my porch. I tried luring him into a carrier to get him to the local wildlife rehabilitation center, but he was too clever. I wound up nursing him back to health myself as best I could. Any time I’d go outside he’d climb all over me and was so friendly. I think about him a lot, and that experience was very special to me.

After that, I moved up to the UP and lived in a national forest. A herd of deer became like outside pets, and they’d come onto the porch and stare in through the glass door when they wanted to be fed. In the spring they’d leave their fans in my yard for daycare, and it was a delight to see them chilling in the yard with me during the day.

The chickadees up there would get daringly close in the winter, so I decided to see if they’d eat out of my hand if I had high value treats. It worked a little too well, because they’d come and land on me when I got home from work or was outside for other reasons. I ended up winning over some cute little nuthatches, too, but they weren’t as fearless as the chickadees and wouldn’t bother with me unless I had food.

I live in a good sized city now, so I don’t have the same opportunities I did in other places I’ve lived. I miss it so much.

Drag makeup can also be effective!