Okay, so imagine you live with a dog or cat.

by veganigans:

And if you actually do, you can imagine them for this. But as an example, let’s say you have golden retriever companion. And so you’re really into golden retrievers. And maybe you look them up on Google Images sometimes, just so you can smile at more of them and see dogs who look like your dog friend.

And the photos that come up are overwhelmingly awesome:

Like, holy shit adorableness:

And trust me, if you keep scrolling you’re not gonna come across a single sad pic.

Should I do the same thing but this time looking at tabby cats…

Like omg:

Cuteness overloadddd.

My childhood dog friend passed away last year. And although he was always kind of funky looking and probably not only one breed, I sometimes still look at photos of the dogs who look most like he did:

But the thing is, I don’t currently live with a dog or a cat. I live with chickens. And they’re every bit as social, smart, and emotive as dogs and cats are. They’re awesome companions and they’ll live with me for the rest of their lives, until they die from age.

Here they are:

And here we are:

They’re totally annoying just like cats and will interrupt my sleep by climbing on me. But I love them. So much.

So sometimes I look up pictures of other chickens who look like they do.

And it starts off totally okay:

Like there are a lot of them together, but they’re all outside and seem happy.

But if I keep scrolling…

Suddenly I’m met with this:

And this:

And images that are even more terrifying, like someone seemingly straight up drowning someone else:

Or this bloody scene:

And if this isn’t really disturbing to you, please imagine if these same kinds of pictures came up when you Googled “golden retriever.” Like you were met with pictures of a dead, decapitated dog whose fur had been boiled off and her corpse broiled.

And maybe this all seems a little dramatic. Like, “She can just stop Googling these photos, right?” But the thing is, this is part of something larger.

When I lived with a dog, I was sometimes worried he’s run away and get lost far from home. But I was never worried someone would take him, kill him, and eat him. And now those thoughts keep me awake at night, because globally other people kill and eat 58 billion little guys just like my little guys each year. So I’m not just being paranoid here. What reason do I have to think someone would see my chicken companions as individuals full of and deserving of life when they eat the bodies of other birds every day?

And so when I talk about speciesism, this is what I mean. There is no true difference between the dogs and cats we share our homes with and the chickens and fish and cows and pigs we confine, kill, and call dinner:

It’s just all about how we choose to see them:

And we can choose to fight speciesism. We can choose to say no one should be reduced to their body and no one needs to or should be killed. Together, we can end this. So:

For the sake of these guys:

and everyone who wasn’t so lucky: