The Harm in Owning a Pet

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/12/opinion/the-harm-in-owning-a-pet.html

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To the Editor:

Jessica Pierce writes thoughtfully about the harm that is often involved unintentionally in owning an animal (“Is Your Pet Lonely and Bored?,” Sunday Review, May 8). She says that “if we really care about animals, we ought to look beyond the sentimental and carefully scrutinize our practices.” I agree.

If, however, we really care about animals, we would also consider how our pet-owning contributes substantially to agro-industrial food production that brutalizes and kills countless other animals — cattle, chickens, fish — and, especially in the case of cattle, also entails wider ecological harm.

BRUCE BAUM

Vancouver, British Columbia