“Until the day I moved out of my parents’ house, there had never been a time in my life that we didn’t have at least one family pet. We’ve always had dogs, and over the years we’ve welcomed a variety of other species through our front door, from rabbits to horses, and even a goldfish named Boris.
Being fortunate enough to be surrounded by pets throughout my childhood meant that I grew up referring to my family as a clan of devoted animal lovers. Animals were a way of life; we meticulously planned our family holidays around them, and for years my weekends were dedicated to cleaning stables, come rain, wind or shine. However, despite the way our lives seemed to revolve around our furry companions, there were some animals that were treated a bit differently to those we kept as pets. It was a divide that, up until the age of 21, I had always accepted as normal — we love animals, but sometimes we eat them too.