Pet Semetary (TW: animal deaths)
So for some context—I (22f) still live with my family. I am a pretty big pacifist. I was vegan for a time but had to go back to eating a “regular” diet for health reasons. In the house we live in, we have a garage. In our garage, we have a tendency to have mice problems. When we first got mice in this house, my mom brought them inside because it was winter. They were held in one of our old pet carriers but they escaped in the house. Took us a bit to find them all. Anyways.
For a while now, I have been finding animals around the city and bringing them home to be buried. I find people can be unnecessarily cruel so I take care of them myself. There’s a dirt space on the side of my house that I put them in. It started with my hamster Sammy. And from then on, that’s where I put them and give them names. For me, this brings me a sense of peace and I hope in their little furry/feathered hearts that it brings them peace too, to be back surrounded with nature.
Before tonight, I had a total of 9. 3 pets of my own and 6 I have found. From my hamster to a mallard duck. This process means a lot to me. That might sound crazy, but it does, regardless of the emotional toll it brings me.
Tonight, I went for a walk with my cousin. We found a magpie and I brought him home. We named him James and I buried him alongside his new friends. The process never gets easier. I try and make them feel special and loved during the whole thing.
Back to the mice problem, last fall-ish my family started using mouse traps. I was completely against it from the start. But I always volunteered to handle them when we caught any. My family never really let me know and when they did, they told me they had already handled it. I questioned how but they never gave me a solid answer. Well…I got my answer tonight and I could not be more devastated.
After I buried James, I was putting the compost bag I used to carry him home into our outdoor compost bin. And that’s when I saw 2 mouse traps with the mice still there. They were tossed in there without a care and I’ve never felt more disappointed in my family. I mean, how could they be so damn heartless? One of the mice had his nose stuck under the trap too. His tiny little nose. Their bodies were trapped. I hope it was quick for them so they didn’t suffer.
So what did I do? I sobbed while taking them out of the traps (the trap indent on their bodies still being there making me cry harder). I kept apologizing to them, hoping it would reach their souls. It’s their first time living too, and their lives were stripped away from them in a terrible way. And even in death, they felt little to no respect or honour. I buried them together, hoping they could find each other after death.
Rest in Peace Timmy and Tommy (the 2 mice). I’m so sorry for how my family treated you…and I hope someday in your hearts, you can find a way to be at peace.