Vegan Mofo: Honor Those Who Inspire Your Veganism

Today, for the Vegan Mofo theme, we're supposed to honor a human or non-human animal who inspires our veganism. I considered dedicating this post to Jil Evans, an old friend from Food Not Bombs who inspired me to make the switch from vegetarianism to veganism back in 2004.

But I've lost track of Jil. She moved away years ago, and the only pics I have of her are from my old film camera. And I'd have to dig those out and scan them. But Jil was awesome, and she taught me how easy it was to be vegan.

Instead, I'd like to dedicate this post to my animal family. Paul and I share our home with 10 animal companions! I've shared pics of them on the blog before, but who can say no to more cute fuzzy animal pics? These little guys remind me every day that there's no difference between eating a pig or a cow than eating a dog or a cat or a squirrel.

My oldest dog is Datsun. He'll be 14 in February! He's such a good boy. Obedient, loving, friendly. And he loves to play, even though his hips are starting to give out. Datsun is basically the best dog ever. I've had him for longer than I've lived in Memphis! In fact, I was still college when my ex and I adopted Datsun.

And then there's Maynard — the white devil. Maynard is a rescue pittie, and he's a bundle of energy. He's stubborn and hyper. He jumps on people and knocks them over. He doesn't listen all that well. But when he finally calms down, he's a very sweet pup. He follows me all over the house, and I can't sit on the couch without Maynard wanting to sit in my lap. And he weighs, like, 70 pounds! Big ole lap dog!

We have six kitties, the oldest of which is Akasha. My ex and I took him in just a few months after Datsun, so he's almost 14 too. Akasha is such a sweetie. He LOVES to cuddle and to be picked up and carried around the house. He has a disease called mega-colon, so he takes two meds twice a day. But he's so worth all the money and time at the vet.

And then there's Pandora, our only girl kitty. She's so soft. But she's not really into being held or sitting in laps. She does love tummy rubs though! Because she's the only girl, she has the run of the house. All the other animals basically bow down to Pandora. She's the queen bee.

Polaris is our loud kitty! He meows ALL THE TIME. Just walks around the house meowing for no reason at all. If he sits next to you and you move a muscle, he'll meow at you. If he wants something, he'll meow. If he doesn't want something, he'll meow. Sometimes, he'll even have a conversation with you —you meow, he meows, and it goes on until you get bored and stop. He always wins at that game.

Gelfling is Paul's favorite. He rescued him from the streets when he was a tiny kitten, and those two are inseparable. They lay in the recliner together every night and watch movies together. Gelfling is super sweet, and he loves to head butt. But he's also a bully. Sometimes, he chases Maynard, the pit, around the house. And he steals treats from the other cats.

Ozzy was Paul's former roommate's cat when Paul lived in Nashville. The guy couldn't pay rent one month, so he moved out while Paul was at work. But he left his cat. What an ass. It's fine though because Ozzy is much better off with us. He's a sweetie. He likes to paw me in the nose. And we do yoga together in the mornings.

And finally, there's Seymour, the Cupboard Cat. He's a major fraidy cat. He's scared of everything — people, dogs, other cats. So he chooses to live above the kitchen cabinets. Never comes down. He's such a sweetie though! He loves being pet (I climb onto the counters for that), and he loves to eat.

Y'all know about Herman, right? Herman was a baby squirrel who fell from our backyard tree last summer. We raised him and released him, but he came by every few days to visit up until about 2 weeks ago. I think he's finally left the nest for good, which makes me sad. I'll miss this guy! Here's a pic from Herman's first day outside last October! Exploring the big wide world.

And now we have a new baby squirrel — Mabel — who fell from the same tree a couple weeks ago. We'll release her in the same way when the time is right, but she's still nursing for now. Her tiny eyes just opened last weekend!