TulsaPets Magazine November 2022

34 TulsaPets • November / December 2022 Don’t Paint Pets! Animals Are Not Artwork by Kim Doner W anna paint pets? Like: Draw on dogs? Tint those turtles? Sharpie some shells? Color the cats, acrylic a crab, pigment the parrot, ink an iguana, rouge the rat? I’ll be direct here: Don’t. Don’t. Don’t. Years ago, a very entertaining book titled “Why Cats Paint” achieved bestseller status. It was a spoof, beautifully photo- graphed, of several supposedly artistic cats, all working on serious creations with their paint-stained paws theatrically swiping one last stroke. Shortly thereafter came “Why Paint Cats,” and the animals themselves became the art. The second book did even better in sales. Produced in the earlier days of Photoshop, the digital genius behind it featured cats sporting incredible colors and patterns, as if their owners had actually managed to dye fur and create facial expressions of “haute cat-tour.” Chemicals Can Harm Animals Fast forward to today. How often do we see Facebook posts of a toddler who got hold of Mama’s lipstick and proceeded to decorate the dog? It’s even funnier when there’s contrast, and Rover has white fur and a deep cherry stain splotched every- where and looks mournfully stoic from being victimized in such a shameful way. I’ve laughed at those photos many times but began to question how dyes, colors, and other chemicals affect animals. We humans discover when we’ve erred in our choices through a rash or other kind of reaction, what about when we foist dyes on animals? Can color application hurt?