Pets are
important to me and I can’t imagine life without them. Fortunately, in the
modern day pet keeping is accepted and thought of as normal – but this wasn’t
always the case.
In medieval
times it was the strongly held Christian belief that God created animals for
the use of man. Animals had the status of slaves, there to serve, with man as
their superior. It was held that a deep affection for a pet was a sin.
Times were
tough so you can understand this functional outlook on life. After all if you
were a regular man or woman struggling to feed your family, then it could
easily be argued it was a sin to put food into the mouth of an animal that didn’t
have a use or purpose.
Although
people did keep pets in the dark and middle ages, this was largely the preserve
of the wealthy. Any self-respecting Lord and his lady kept pets because they
had the money to do so and wanted to advertise the fact as a sign of their
status and power. Indeed, these pets were often overweight as they were overfed
to make it obvious that their owner wanted for nothing.
In medieval
times people expected animals to live outdoors and to be functional, so the
idea of indoor animals that existed purely for companionship or amusement
seemed alien and extravagant.
It took a
shift in attitude in the 18th century, for pet-keeping to become
more widely accepted. This change took place because of a philosophical
argument that taking good care of animals articulated what it was to be a human
or “humane”. Keeping a pet was looked on as a sign of moral-care rather than
profligacy.
In the 18th
century saw the birth of consumerism. More people were living in towns and
cities, and so more people were spending more time indoors. The idea of “indoor
animals” or pets was truly born. As the British Empire expanded and travelers
returned with exotic animals, this coincided perfectly regular people having a
modicum of disposable cash and their interest in keeping pets.
But what of
the word “pet” itself?
The first
reference to a “pet” comes from 1539 and refers to a lamb hand-reared in the
house. These two characteristics, being tame and living in the house, formed
the basis for the definition of pet but fails to hint at the favoritism with
which pets are held.
A modern
definition is: “A domestic or
tamed animal or bird kept for companionship or pleasure.”
And finally,
historian Prof Keith Thomas proposed three defining features of a medieval pet:
·
It’s
kept in the house
·
It’s
given a name
·
It’s
never eaten…
Can’t say
fairer than that!
