Post by Radrook Admin on Jul 9, 2019 9:10:41 GMT -5
Why Animals sometimes Misbehave.
Ever notice how some people can't seem to figure out why an animal suddenly harms them although the answer is staring them in the face? For example, why should a man who goads his cattle with a sharpened prod be surprised when a certain bull decides he has had enough and gores him? Why should such a person assume that an animal, especially a mammal, cannot hold grudges? If indeed the person doing the prodding doesn't know, then why not be on the safe side and assume that bulls and other cattle can hold grudges and that sooner or later they will seek a way to exact vengeance? The man I have in mind obviously didn't know and was caught totally by surprise when a bull gored, stomped and urinated on him as he sought safety in a narrow ditch he found in an open field as he fled from the infuriated bull
Reason it happened? Well, maybe that bull didn't feel well that day. Maybe previous prodding were aching and becoming infected. Along comes Don Luis with the same prod and jabs the bull in the same place and voila! Revenge time!
The same can happen with horses. Unfortunately, some people treat horses as if they were mindless unfeeling machines. Get on and ride. Doesn't matter how the horse feels about it. After all, cowboys do it all the time in the movies and the horses don't seem to mind one bit. Unfortunately, life isn't the movies but has its unpleasant surprises. For example, a disgruntled horse might kick the person as who intends to ride him as the person approaches from behind. The horse might also try to unseat the person by running beneath a low tree branch. Or the horse might suddenly stop so that the rider is propelled over his head and lands on the ground. Or the horse might rear up and purposefully land on the person or might bang or scrape the rider's led against a wall or tree. So if a horse shows a certain disinclination to accept being ridden a certain day, perhaps it isn't a good idea to insist with that particular horse.
Then there are animals which were obviously created to roam free in wide open spaces. Orcs, dolphins, birds come readily to mind. Can you imagine being confined to an area which has you banging up against a wall every time you attempt to swim as God intended you to? Can you imagine that the ones putting you in that miserable situation are forcing you to perform tricks? That they are regularly riding on your back happily enjoying themselves in that restricted space in which they hold you prisoner? Is it any wonder then that now and then one of these imprisoned animals suddenly lashes out at its captors by trying to drown him. Or being a bird who is designed to soar, glide and flap through the atmosphere and being forced to perch all day in a small cage. Is it surprising that such a bird might accidentally take a peck at your eye?
So as humans, it would be wise acknowledge that we are not the only ones who feel resentfulness when mistreated and should not be surprised when animals lash out based on that resentfulness. Accepting this will make us far more careful in how we treat them and not as baffled at their seemingly unjustiable reactions.