Recent comments in /f/IAmA

ecuintras t1_iusf304 wrote

Reply to comment by eb_bartels in I spent ten years researching and writing a book about all the different things people do when their pets die. AMA! by eb_bartels

Somehow both my spouse and I became our respective family's reliquary keepers, and we both are the end of our bloodlines. To ensure our pets are never lost, whoever dies first gets to take the pets ashes with them!

For the painting I'll see if the family who bought the ranch wants to hang it in one of the barns, or if the stockyard wants it - they've got a lot of western paraphernalia and no small number of the horse's progeny was auctioned through there.

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MRIGlobal OP t1_iurevf0 wrote

Reply to comment by --0-x-0-- in Hi Reddit! We are scientists at MRIGlobal here to answer your questions about recent Ebola outbreaks. Ask us anything! by MRIGlobal

The complexities of this issue are vast, as attempts to control Ebola must consider not only the virus, but also a multitude of extreme economic and social forces, a lack of information, and cultural behaviors. Paul Farmer explores this well in his book, “Fevers, Feuds, and Diamonds: Ebola and the Ravages of History.”

Economic factors may result in impacted communities lacking necessary infrastructure like roads, hospitals, treatment centers, and diagnostic laboratories that make disease response more effective. Too, rather than misinformation, perpetuation of the Ebola virus may be attributed to a lack of information about how the disease spreads and the benefits of diagnostic and pharmaceutical resources. Many communities, especially those in rural areas, are uneducated on infection mitigation efforts like quarantine and contact tracing, as well as proactive disease prevention efforts like wearing a mask and isolating yourself from diseased individuals.

There is also something significant to be said about cultural behaviors, specifically in West Africa, and their effect on Ebola response. For example, there is a native superstition that attributes Ebola to witchcraft, tasking healers or religious leaders with explaining disease contraction rather than relying on medical professionals. Too, an overall mistrust in government institutions and dependence on traditional caregiving practices may also isolate people in that region from resources to fight and protect against disease.

MRIGlobal's efforts aim to provide impacted communities with mobile laboratories to support research and diagnostic capabilities, as well as training for healthcare workers to practice and teach proper disease management strategies.

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eb_bartels OP t1_iur5i9b wrote

Reply to comment by ecuintras in I spent ten years researching and writing a book about all the different things people do when their pets die. AMA! by eb_bartels

I love this! So sweet that the portrait is passed down, but I know what you mean about things losing their meaning when the last person who personally knew that pet dies. I interviewed some people who said they really struggled knowing what to do with urns full of pet ashes that belonged to their parents, grandparents, etc.

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eb_bartels OP t1_iur53zd wrote

Reply to comment by onairmastering in I spent ten years researching and writing a book about all the different things people do when their pets die. AMA! by eb_bartels

I do write a lot in my book about how different cultures have different attachments to their pets, often because of historical context re: perspectives on animals or even just having to deal with other hard things. (For example, sometimes people in countries that have experienced a lot of recent war/famine often can't/don't prioritize having pets when just making it through day-to-day life as a human is so hard.) There is also a difference in who has disposable incomes to have pets in the first place and/or then spent a lot of money on elaborate mourning rituals. Though I will say that even in Latin America not everyone just goes and gets a new one! I wrote a piece for Slate about a pet composting company in Colombia: https://slate.com/technology/2022/08/pet-composting-pleia.html. So elaborate pet mourning rituals are alive and well almost everywhere these days!

And some people do feel they can go out and easily get a replacement pet -- I saw many family plots in pet cemeteries where people had dozens of the same breed of dog or even named the pet the same thing over and over (Charlie 1, Charlie 2, Charlie 3, etc.) but a lot of people feel strongly that every pet is different and unique, even if you get one that looks the same as the old one and does similar things to the old one, so it is still sad to lose that original pet regardless of whatever pets follow that first one.

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eb_bartels OP t1_iur4c31 wrote

Reply to comment by Shemoose in I spent ten years researching and writing a book about all the different things people do when their pets die. AMA! by eb_bartels

Yes, I interviewed vet techs/nurses, veterinarians, vet students, and even receptionists at vet offices! Chapter three of my book has the majority of the quotes from those interviews. I definitely got many amazing stories from people who work in veterinary offices! Thanks for doing what you do.

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eb_bartels OP t1_iur46ot wrote

Reply to comment by AttentionRoyal2276 in I spent ten years researching and writing a book about all the different things people do when their pets die. AMA! by eb_bartels

Yes! Lots of people do that for various reasons. Some because they want to bury their pet in their backyard but the animal dies during winter / when the ground is frozen so they have to wait a few months. Others do it while preparing to send their pets to a taxidermist or cloning company. And others do it just because they need a little longer to say goodbye and sit with their pet's body as they process their death -- very natural and normal, like how a lot of cultures have wakes/viewings for human bodies after someone dies.

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