Animal Welfare: G-force is INFURIATING me.

[CavyMama]

Originally Posted by Cocoa'sClover

The sad thing about all of this is that it's not just G-force that Disney has recently featured a Guinea pig in.

Both Sky High and Bedtime Stories also had guinea pigs in them. It's no wonder that they decided to do a whole movie with Guinea pigs as the main character's after all of the other publicity.

Didn't Dr Doolittle have a guinea pig in it too? It makes me wonder how many others did that aren't coming to mind. Geez, these movie people have to know the impact that a movie with animorphic animal characters can have on a child who is too young to know that it's just a movie.

I know that movies with cats and dogs usually have some kind of animal welfare person on set to make sure none of the animals are harmed but what about the more exotic animals?

This could be for real animals on set or to make sure the right message is sent about care of an animal. Even just to make sure a statement is in place to clarify about the specific animal care.

[YayPiggies]

We should all team up and make a G-Force re- write- A way, WAY better version! Or a piggy documentary!

[Paula]

The problem here isn't so much that the movie was made or that the movie portrays these animals as spies or super heroes or anything else. It's not even the intellectual wonders that, like this Craigslist poster, decide as a result of viewing the movie that a guinea pig is the thing they've just gotta have and run right out and buy one. It's that they can. It's that on any given day, any brain child can walk into any number of pet stores and buy one (or a hundred) of these sweet little creatures and house it, treat it, and feed it whatever they please, not a second thought required. To take it a step further, it's that for as long as there are impulse buys, there will be breeders to supply the product.

I've said this before, but it bears repeating - it isn't the movie that's the problem - it's the general lackadaisical approach to pet ownership that movies like this tend to engender. Yes, it would be nice if Disney had taken a proactive approach to pet ownership with a blurb before the movie started. But ultimately the problem comes down to the fact that after seeing this movie with their children, there's not the slightest impediment to a parent going directly from the theater to a pet store to buy Tommy or Sally their new little action hero. It's that pet stores market and sell them as products with no more quantitative worth than the action hero dolls or stuffed animals that have also come out as a result of the movie.

Now. As for the replies to the CL poster. As offensive as it may have been, and I agree that it was, you have to understand that the vast majority of people who would think to post an ad like this probably just don't know any better. So instead of rattling off a bunch of angry emails, a better approach might be to send a note with a simple message, these animals are not toys, and let it go from there. I imagine that I would be a great deal more inclined to ask questions and actually learn more from a message that was kind and invited questions than one dripping with accusations and condescension. Yes, people should know better, but the plain and simple fact of the matter is that many just don't.

As we all know, the world of guinea pigs is complex and overwhelming at times, and for a first timer, it's probably better to be eased into the many facets of it than bombarded with facts that are no doubt completely foreign upon first consultation.

[Priil]

Please, please, please, make that have been a joke! I can't even fathom how an adult could post that and think it was reasonable!

I agree with Paula though. I'm always a fan of a basic "catch more flies with honey than vinegar" approach. If she really is this uninformed about guinea pigs and their behavior she'd likely benefit from a kind explanation on what guinea pigs are usually like. Yelling and scolding usually results in the negative. I'm still crossing my fingers it was a joke though.

Guinea pigs are adorable, and that's why they are being shown more in movies. It's really that simple. Hamsters and rabbits were overplayed. Most people hate rats and mice (Ill informed people mostly). And gerbils and chinchillas...well they rarely get media attention. Gerbils get it more than chinchillas though! The next logical, in a media sense, step is to start up with guinea pigs. They're fresh, they adorable, and easy to handle. The larger faces look much better on camera as well. I'm sure they aren't thinking that this will cause many guinea pigs to be adopted and then placed into shelters (since this wouldn't gain them any profit! I doubt they own guinea pig mills :P) they are just thinking people will pay to see cute!

Although I do believe they need to do more research on the animals they are portraying! Guinea pigs in exercise balls?! Though doing research would take time, time that they don't want to waste. It's sad.

[CavyMama]

Originally Posted by Priil

I'm always a fan of a basic "catch more flies with honey than vinegar" approach.

I understand that the saying means it's better/more effective to be nice than mean but I never understood why anyone would want to catch flies in the first place.

[iluvmypigclover]

I agree with you Paula. I think I may have acted too harshly in the moment, but hopefully she'll at least read the message and think for a moment.

[Priil]

Originally Posted by CavyMama

I understand that the saying means it's better/more effective to be nice than mean but I never understood why anyone would want to catch flies in the first place.

hahahaha! Good point!

[Paula]

Originally Posted by CavyMama

I understand that the saying means it's better/more effective to be nice than mean but I never understood why anyone would want to catch flies in the first place.

To get them out of your way so they're no longer a nuisance or distraction to you.

And to clarify, I've never been one to believe it's more important to be nice than to say something that's begging to be said, but in cases like this one it's more important to keep your "eye on the prize" than be right. Frankly, when you have a person who posts something like this on CL without once stopping to think it might not be the greatest display of her intelligence, you've got a person who more likely than not will respond more positively to kindness and simple informative facts than a message detailing how stupid she is.

The overriding consideration here is that she needs to either reconsider getting a guinea pig altogether or at least learn what their actual natures and requirements are. For the benefit of any poor animal she may acquire, I think it's more important to get that message to her than to send her something that's going to make her defenses go up straight away.

[IluvePiggies]

Originally Posted by Irishmoon

If that craigslist gets your blood going, listen to this. I received a Petco flyer in the mail yesterday. I normally dont shop there but with the large amount of different critters in my house, Im always looking for things on sale. Im flipping through the ad and get to the 2nd to last page and what do I see?? A huge picture of a G-Force guinea pig. And next to it a coupon for $10 off a guinea pig! Are you kidding me?!! I was so mad I yelled at the flyer and threw it in the garbage but not before my roommate came running out of his room asking me what was wrong. Stupid movie.

Me too. Except for Petsmart. I saw the movie but don't support the whole thing.

[iluvmypigclover]

For the benefit of any poor animal she may acquire, I think it's more important to get that message to her than to send her something that's going to make her defenses go up straight away.

I agree with you Paula. I never called her stupid, or even "yelled" at her. I merely wrote a strong e-mail stating that she had a big misconception about what a pet guinea pig is, does, and means to a family. I was writing in the hope that she'll realize that she needs to reconsider.