Berfrois

You could adopt a few rescue rats that are retiring…

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Yoshitoshi, The Wicked Thoughts of the Priest Raigō of Miidera Transform Him into a Rat, 1891 (detail)

From American Scientist:

The lives of animals seen and unseen are affected by the choices we make. We have a responsibility to them because we have exploited them for millennia, and simply because they are vulnerable. So we must ask ourselves: What might we be doing otherwise?

King offers a variety of suggestions in keeping with her credo that it’s fine to start small—you could, for instance, cultivate plants that attract and support pollinators, adopt a few rescue rats that are retiring from a research lab (or donate blankets for the ones someone else is adopting), donate money to an animal sanctuary, help curb the population of feral cats by getting involved in a local “trap, neuter, and release” program, or visit your local zoo regularly and contact management when you notice areas where improvements might be needed.

Bearing witness, King says, is the least we can do to honor the animals who suffer as a result of human actions.

“Bettering the Lives of Animals”, Flora Taylor, American Scientist

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