I’ve always loved animals, even from a little child. I used to rescue injured ladybirds and butterflies at home to try and rehabilitate them. We also had a cat called Snowy from when I was aged five, and, as I was an only child, she was my main companion.
There certainly are a lot of species to think about, and some diseases specific to only certain species. An antibiotic may be safe in one species and toxic in another. Animals can’t tell us what the problem is, either.
I’m a veterinary pathologist; so I see the variety of tumours across the species, and the different behaviour of seemingly similar tumours in different species. If your pet has a lump, a biopsy will be taken by your vet in practice and sent to someone like me who will make a diagnosis and recommend treatment.
We’re very lucky in the UK to have the NHS for people where treatment’s free at source. Medicines, consultations, and running costs for veterinary surgeries and hospitals are probably in line with what humans would be charged for healthcare. Saying that, I’m pleased about the investigation into veterinary pricing by the Competition and Markets Authority, because both vets and owners need to be assured that sector consolidation doesn’t reduce customer choice, and continues to give good treatment at a fair price.
Sometimes, a pet is a very, very valuable part of a family. It’s a sentient being, and it should be looked after properly. You take on a pet, you take on responsibility for it. I always advise people to take out pet insurance that will cover all the treatments throughout that animal’s life. Some treatments are so expensive that people can’t afford them, but there are palliative treatments.
Some pet owners can’t accept that euthanasia is right for their pet, but animals don’t understand pain or why they feel so ill. In such terminal situations, it’s not right to put our own feelings above what’s right for the animal.
Similarly, we shouldn’t undertake extensive surgeries or heroic medical interventions that make the animal feel terrible; but, as I’ve had a cat go through chemotherapy for bowel cancer and make a full recovery, I shouldn’t be averse to treatments which are now well controlled and managed in pets.
I’m saddened by animals which have serious health problems due to breeding for particular characteristics, like the brachycephalic breeds, which include pugs and French Bulldogs. I’m sure they are loving dogs, but most of them have severe breathing difficulties due to their flattened faces. They shouldn’t really be bred any more. And these ranges of disposable, fashionable dog-wear available . . . that element of dog ownership contributes to environmental damage.
I still eat meat, but I now eat less, and from organic and known sources. All of us should move towards vegan or vegetarian eating so land used to grow food for animals could be used to replenish the country’s biodiversity.
I’m a cat junkie. I have three: an 11-year-old Russian Blue, Lulu; Poppy, a Chartreux, aged five [in the photo]; and KitKat, a chocolate Birman, aged four. Lulu is the matriarch, teased by the little imp KitKat, with Poppy very stable and calm.
After a period of illness, I felt called to the Church. I love my veterinary work, and eventually discerned a calling to be a minister in secular employment, someone who keeps their secular role and is called to use opportunities in that secular space to speak of the Christian faith. I was priested in 2020 at Chester Cathedral, and I’m attached to a church in Stockport where I lead and preach twice a month.
Animals aren’t judgemental, and observing their enjoyment of life takes people into the joy of God. They’re attuned to the important things of life. Social media can be a very hostile, judgemental place, but a pet loves you for what you are. A support dog can bring a lot of confidence to autistic children, for instance. People are allowed to bring a well-behaved dog into our church if they sit with their owner — children are allowed to run around and make as much noise as they want. But of course, you have to be careful with immune-suppressed people, for instance.
I started using social media during 2020 in lockdown. Initially, I wanted to keep an interaction with my lab colleagues, and my church started streaming services online. I post reflections, prayers, and animal facts, and litter my posts with animal photos. Most people love animals, and it’s a way in to discuss other aspects of people’s lives or faith.
I have over 9000 followers on Facebook from across the globe. I’d never have dreamed that I’d interact with so many people of all faiths and none.
I also have a pet prayer group, where about 200 people help support others dealing with pet bereavement. I have a monthly podcast series, Believe it or Not, I’ve never. . ., where I speak with ministers, environmentalists, and scientists on a range of topics. I do a “Woof Wednesday”, and put a picture of a dog on my post, with a Bible verse and a contemporary translation, and people put them on their church notice boards, or introduce pet services at their church.
It’s a lot of work, but hearing that someone’s started going to church, or had a real turning point in their faith, makes it all worth it.
We’ll always need physical gatherings and church buildings. Virtual ministry should be seen as an equally important and complimentary ministry to that, and it provides a non-threatening environment in which people can ask questions. In some churches, they’d find attitudes that can’t now be expressed in a secular workplace, or be judged if they’re scruffy. Being judged for my clothes as a student was a key reason why I drifted away from church. And, if you don’t understand the liturgy, that’s quite overwhelming. Some of my followers are disabled and can’t attend physical church easily.
I believe in making faith joyful and meaningful for folk. It’s easy to put off people by making rules, expecting people to fit in a certain mould, and not loving people just as they are. The reasons I drifted away from church are the very reasons I feel so passionate about ministry being inclusive and accessible for all, and that’s very achievable online, where people are these days.
My father was a musician and church organist in the Presbyterian Church in Belfast, and my mother was a housewife and very good singer in the church choir. I went to church regularly as a child; so church was always part of me, and God sort of crept up on me. My first intense encounter was probably at my confirmation, at the age of 16. I felt a rush of fire through me, and an intense uplifted feeling at the point of the confirmation.
As priests, we have a regular prayer life, and that keeps me in touch with God. I feel closest to God in silent meditation, and I value silent retreats to focus on hearing God in the silence and what he’s calling me to.
Lack of fairness makes me angry. Many politicians seem to be motivated by self-seeking ambitions rather than working towards the best interests of society. It’s a joy to meet those who truly put others first.
Family time makes me happiest: relaxing with my husband and cats and having some downtime.
I have hope in Generation Z. They are really challenging the accepted global systems and politicians on big issues like global warming, loss of biodiversity, social injustice, and racial intolerance.
Latterly, my prayers have been very much for peace, especially in Gaza. I support the only animal rescue centre in the Gaza Strip, Sulala Animal Rescue, and it’s heartbreaking to see how the animals are suffering alongside the people.
I’d like to be locked in a church with the Archbishop of Canterbury. I want the novel approach which myself and others take in ministry to be more widely understood in the Church of England. If he and I chatted for a few hours, we’d learn a lot from each other.
The Revd Dr Jenny McKay was talking to Terence Handley MacMath.
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