If we didn’t have pets we wouldn’t have lolocats, and I for one am not sure I would want to live in such a world!
Reading the first part including rants;
No offense Johann but there’s a much bigger picture than what you illustrate… sort of makes me think you’ve never had a friend in a dog. Alot of animal keeping is a form of imprisonment, which is I believe the word you were looking for when you talked about enslavement, (ie, keeping birds in cages makes me sad) but I’ve rarely seen a dog kept against it’s will. And yes, the cat argument from byte is also a pretty big argument (although me and cats have never gotten along hehe)
There’s some dogs that live on my street, and their human carers don’t have a fence. The dogs are happy to be there, they come out on the street and defend the place like its a fort (much to many of the people on the street’s annoyance). To put it bluntly they wouldn’t want to be anywhere else; evident by their lack of bondage and the fact they stay there.
We look after a dog too, she was rescued from the pound, mangy and generally unhappy. We took her in, gave her a wash and some food and a warm place to sleep. If she goes outside, its to crap, and she cries at the door till we let her in and she comes and curls up next to us, staring adoringly until we give her some attention.
Its not like we’re making her build the pyramids… being a slave is a human condition, and even if this was a translation problem or something and you meant imprisonment, every animal should be assessed on a case by case basis, kind of childish to categorically hate people who have animals they call friends.
My cats were stray kittens when I got them. I adopted them. It’s one of the most thankful experiences I ever had. I’m sure they prefer to live in the woods somewhere, but so do I.
Ever Wonder… if other dogs think poodles are some weird religious cult?
edit:
I too want to live in the woods on a mountain near the sea
^^^THIS.
Nope, that’s not it. (okay, I never actually OWNED a dog, but I was and am friends with a bunch and get asked once a month if I have a dog, or told that I should have one, so bleh to that ^^)
There is a big difference between taking in stray pets and… BREEDING MORE OF THEM.
You make it seem like all the animals came out of the jungle to live with us humans, which is just not the case with most of the pets. We domesticated and bred them - so yeah, now they can either stick to us or perish. That they chose to stick to us doesn’t prove anything.
In regards to “slavery”: yes, that’s an unfortunate term, yet I can’t think of a better one. Let’s for a moment ignore* the billions of used and abused animals: I claim there that in 99% of the animal-humand friendships fall in one of these two categories (but NOT that it has to be that way):
A.) the human is MUCH more important to the animal than the animal is important to their owner. For every self-confident, smart dog (I know plenty) there are 20 who just go nuts when MASTER is not around. I think this is inherently unfair. You are EVERYTHING to that being, and to you it’s a very dear friend AT MOST, and sometimes even a nuisance or a toy. You can say there are worse problems in the world as long as those animals are not harmed, and I’d agree, but it’s still something I’d like to see done away with for good. Let the animals live in reservations and parks, and don’t pollute the Earth so much that the only source of food are near human settlements… THEN let the symbiosis and the friendship begin. What we have and do now reeks, at least to me.
B.) People who treat and pamper their animals as if they were their siblings, children, lovers or whatever. They’re everything to each other, and while I don’t “hate” those pet owners, I certainly pity them. They’re without fail humans that either bore me or make my skin crawl after a while. But yeah, I guess you can’t speak of slavery or abuse in those cases… it’s still fucking sad to me, and simply wish no new such “relationships” would be formed, while the existing ones live out their travesty if they absolutely need to do that.
(btw, what Byte-Smasher failed to mention when he spoke of “unlimited food and attention” for pets, is the unlimited attention pets give to humans, as if the humans would just give out free gifts… if people think that, they’re deceiving themselves in my opinion)
No, I’m no total stranger to friendship between animals and humans, and having spent nearly 1.5 years of my life on La Gomera I also know friendship with wild cats and dogs as well… or even dolphins (but that’d be stretching it, bordering on making shit up 
)
I just have fucking high standards and I’m an ass about them. I don’t even accept women who focus on making themselves beautiful for men and depend on protection and support, a golden cage if you will, as adult human beings, just like I don’t consider males who do not closely examine the hand(s) that feed them as adult human beings. If I consider THOSE as slaves, how could I NOT consider pets as slaves?
Just because some of them are just there to be loved and loyal and petted - instead of “building the pyramids” WTFLOL?!
But no, I do not actually want PETA or anyone else to put people in caskets, and I don’t call for pet owners to be killed… call it trolling or flaming, but if you actually think I mean that literally and generally, YOU scare me for even responding to me instead of just kickbanning/ignoring me O_O
I’m not saying I’m no hypocrite though… I simply do not let my own circumstances confine the ideals and utopias I hold, hah.
(* which makes me laugh (well not really), because Byte-Smasher said “And what of those people who weren’t racist who just happened to have shaved heads and got beaten anyway… was that justified in your opinion?”, yet the same thought process doesn’t seem to apply to animals…? Put as a question: are all those “happy”** pets worth even ONE burned with cigarettes or freezing to death at some bus stop a few weeks after Christmas? Is it really THAT important for those bred, modified, designed, dependant, infantile creatures to exist, that it is acceptable that so many of them suffer? I’m not asking them, I’m asking you…)
(** I do not contest the happiness, but the dignity of it, and NO, I do not care if the animals agree, just like you wouldn’t care for the opinion of a groomed sex slave defending her handlers. I’m too smart/arrogant for that.)
You’re fucking hilarious. You expect an answer now? Are you that delusional to presume I feel like humoring you after how you’ve insulted me?
Wow… just… fucking… wow.
Are you that delusional to think I’m talking to you?? whatever…
//I’m not asking them//
Oh wait… you meant the pets? Since when do we have the ability to ask a cat or dog their opinion on something?
A hypothetical “you” if you will, “the humans”, instead of the pets. I KNOW they wag the tail and love the food.
At the risk of you throwing a fit again… you’re such a fucktard!
To explain: when I say I’m NOT asking the pets, you respond with “orly since when can pets talk” which is a WTF by itself, but even more so considering that you enthusiastically shout THIS to a post which basically says the actions of the pets show their opinion and free will.
As if “this” would resolve all questions/statements/replies you ignored and prove… something. But again, whatever. I think I made it abundantly clear that I’m not trying to convince you of anything, I frankly don’t care.
Observing an animal’s behavior and asking it its opinion are plainly two different things… I’m sure you’re well aware of this, but you’re claiming I’m the fucktard?
OOOO yeha, smothered by popcorn 
Pets can communicate with people with body language… but they tend to have some issues understanding complex language. Again, something you should be well aware of if you know anything about animals, but it seems you’re a bit lacking. An animal can most definitely let us in on its opinion of certain things, but good luck asking it for an opinion.
We, humans as one species invented umpteen languages, maybe it’s just us having issues understanding simple language
If you’re implying that animals have the ability to convey detailed questions using very simplistic language… then I’m not quite sure what to say other than “uhm no.”
No, what I meant was that animals as one species have one universal ‘language’: dogs bark, cats meow, cows boo, pigs squeel grunt and oink, bats have echolocation as do whales and dolphins, birds ‘sing’, turtles have body telepathy 
… I mean, every single species is ‘talking’ their own ‘language’ throughout the the whole world, except for humans.
I know I’m not good at English. Although my mother spoke French from birth, I’m not good at it at all. German is supposed to be the third motherlanguage in my country and I can’t speak a word of it except for Sweinepoepefleish and I don’t even know if that’s a real German word. Shit, if I’m really come to terms, I’m not even good at Dutch. The only language I really master is Flemisch swearing 
Animals don’t have the ability to ask detailed questions and humans generally don’t have the ability to understand their simple questions. Well, some of them can, sometimes, if they want, if they find the time, if it fits their needs.
Animals do apparently have regional accents though.
But I want to know who these cows are going around saying Boo to. Better not be the geese!