end circumcision

When I first joined 43Things, in January of this year, I recall seeing the goal of educating people not to declaw cats because it is a painful and unnecessary procedure etc. I’m sure you’ve all seen that goal once or twice by now. Well, back then there were only a very few people, I think like 2 or 3 who had adopted that goal. Now it’s well over 200!

WHY is it that when people talk about animals, they will encourage people not to declaw because it is mutilation, but when it comes to people, to BABIES, circumcision is not taken that seriously?

Maybe instead of the impossible “end circumcision” this goal should be “Explain to people that circumcision is a painful and unnecessary procedure and there are better ways of dealing with a little boys foreskin”? In 9 months we’ll have LOTS of people speaking up… or do only cats feel pain?

Now, don’t get me wrong. I don’t agree with declawing at all, either. I adopted a siamese cat who had been declawed in her previous home, before she was left at Animal Control. It makes me sad to think of her nails being ripped out and the pain she felt… but IS THAT ANY DIFFERENT THAN CIRCUMCISION? Why do CATS feel pain and are worth fighting for, BUT NOT HUMAN INFANTS?

My family has sheep. Ten years ago, we decided to start up a small hobby farm to try and make some extra money. (Doesn’t work, btw. The only ones who make money are butchers and OSMA.)

The point of my story, though, before I get off topic, is that sheep are born with long tails. Most people don’t know this, however, because all you see are adult sheep, or older lambs with those cute short tails. This is because when they are a few days old, their tails are cut off by the farmer.

That’s right, chopped off. It is possible to use an elastic ring specifically designed for this instead. The ring is put onto the tail, and eventually cuts off circulation, causing the tail to drop off.

The reasons behind this are it is cleaner (imagine a wooly sheep with the runs!) and easier for females to be bred as adults.

It didn’t take us long to stop removing our lambs tails. We did it because it was “the thing” to do.

First we chopped them off. Then we tried the rings.

It didn’t take us long to stop the process entirely.

My sister and I just started talking about it today (randomnly). She said she was glad we stopped taking off the tails, and I said me too, I don’t even know why we did it in the first place, other than it was just “the thing” to do!

Our conversation reminded me of circumcision. Perhaps parents “go along” with having their sons done because of the myths of that it is “cleaner”, it prevents certain cancers, it’s better to have them “done as babies than adults because they heal faster” and “don’t feel it” (the most heinous of all the myths!), and “It’s just a little piece of useless skin.”

If we chopped off lambs tails because it was what was expected of us, how much more so parents of a newborn feel they are expected to “because dad is” or “all the boys at school are” and that being different will make it harder on a young boy? (Subconscious: different is wrong?)