Dear ConcernedApe -- Responsible pet ownership.

Discussion in 'Suggestions' started by Lichbrite, Jul 4, 2017.

  1. Lichbrite

    Lichbrite Space Hobo

    Hi ConcernedApe, I love playing your video game. I've been playing since it came out. This time around on my new farm, I decided to woo Abigail. To my disappointment, Abigail is practicing some very irresponsible pet ownership.

    I have three rescue guinea pigs and there are three things Abigail is doing very wrong with her pet, David. Since there are so many people playing you game, I was hoping you could correct this to better educate people about guinea pigs.

    Guinea pigs are wonderful, adorable, and smart pets. They are not "starter" pets, they are actually very time consuming and finicky. They need fresh hay, water, and vegetables daily-- but only specific vegetables.

    Here are the things Abigail is doing wrong:

    1) Guinea pigs are herd animals. They should not be alone. In fact, in some countries it's considered so cruel to have a lone guinea pig that it's illegal to buy just one without having a friend for it. Having a lone guinea pig will decrease its lifespan.

    2) Guinea pigs should never, ever have a wheel in its cage. Wheels can damage their spines and kill them. They are not like hamsters. Instead, they should have large cages that they can run around and also get supervised floor time so they can run and play with each other.

    3) Piggies should have C&C cages, not aquariums. There isn't proper ventilation for them to breathe.

    In light of Mojang showing understanding about teaching children proper pet ownership by changing their recent patch from feeding parrots cookies to breed them, to feeding them seeds. I am hoping Chucklefish and ConcernedApe may make this change to teach people how guinea pigs should be treated. I ask you to please reconsider these three things in your game. I love your game so much. I've spent so many hours playing it. Thank you for your time.

    https://pethelpful.com/rodents/5-Most-Common-Guinea-Pig-Owner-Mistakes
     
      Last edited: Jul 5, 2017
    • LuthienNightwolf

      LuthienNightwolf Oxygen Tank

      I'm glad I'm not the only one who is bugged by this stuff. I've had pigs before, they're wonderful. n_n

      I just tell myself she actually has a hamster and she's mistaken about what it is. lol
       
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      • Lilliput

        Lilliput Supernova

        It wouldn't be too hard to make a mod to change the shape/look of the habitat to reflect your suggestions.

        Then again, I'm still waiting to be able to, y'know, actually /feed/ our own farm's dog or cat, and give them some shelter when they choose to sleep outside. :poke:
         
          Marco93 likes this.
        • sunlite

          sunlite Pangalactic Porcupine

          YES. Thank you. I'm a little obsessed with piggies myself, and I was wondering why she had a hamster wheel and only one. I'd also be satisfied if Abigail's dialogue was edited to say it's a hamster.
          (Your guinea pigs are soooooo cute btw!! Nice cage too, I'm glad your piggies are well taken care of)

          I have two boars living in a 2x4 C&C cage with a 1x2 loft. Here are some pics :)

          [​IMG]

          [​IMG]

          [​IMG]

          [​IMG]
           
          • Lichbrite

            Lichbrite Space Hobo

            Your piggies are adorable! :D Thank you for your positive support, guys. It means a lot.
             
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            • LuthienNightwolf

              LuthienNightwolf Oxygen Tank

              ? I don't see anybody freaking out on this thread. OP expressed an idea, a few people agreed, and then we started talking about guinea pigs. Did you make an account just to come here and tell us to calm down? lol
               
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              • mateusfccp

                mateusfccp Void-Bound Voyager

                You must be kidding.
                 
                • sunlite

                  sunlite Pangalactic Porcupine

                  about what?
                   
                  • MouseyPounds

                    MouseyPounds Cosmic Narwhal

                    So, PC Gamer wrote an article about the reddit version of this request and it contains the following responses they got from CA about it:

                     
                    • Fangschrecke

                      Fangschrecke Space Hobo

                      Jesus christ. Are you serious? Why would you take the developers time away to fix such a minor and ridiculous issue? Don't you have other things to worry about? Seriously, nobody gives a flying fuck about that.

                      Stuff like this makes me mad.

                      THIS!
                       
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                      • Trenix

                        Trenix Twenty-three is number one

                        Alright, let me weigh into this. I owned pet rats before. They are very misunderstood animals and just recently more and more people are appreciating them, thankfully. Something you need to understand is that while games are meant to be entertaining, they also teach you certain things in real life, whether directly or indirectly. While I'm not saying playing Stardew Valley you'll go in a mine and start digging for ores, you may however realize that it's perfectly fine to put a pet rodent in an unventilated aquarium tank. Personally, I think it's wrong to have pets in general unless you truly have the space and know how to care for them. I had four rats with a large cage that had 4 layers. I still felt that wasn't enough space for a rat that clears tons of distance in the wild.

                        Also changing some art work and a few text lines takes away VERY little developer time. I can go on and on, but as a developer you're not only there to entertain, but to teach. This developer tried to teach a little about same sex marriages, the homeless, and all that stuff which gets applaud, but then when it comes to an animal, "You must be kidding". Well to be honest the safety of life is more important than all those other meaningless features that the developer attempted to lecture us about. Just saying.
                         
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                        • LuthienNightwolf

                          LuthienNightwolf Oxygen Tank

                          Just wanted to say hello fellow rat lover. :) While guinea pigs are adorable, rats are hands down my favorite pet. It would be cool to see Abby have a pet rat instead, I'd be on board with that. :)
                           
                          • Lilliput

                            Lilliput Supernova

                            Rats are so under-appreciated. You devastate one continent with a plague one time and people never let you live it down.

                            No, I'm teasing, I think rats are one of the most charming and social pets out there-- clever, clean, gentle-- they're really very fun. I think I suggested lab rats as a possible pet for Maru on another thread, with the idea of Demetrius buying some to experiment on and Maru rescuing them in a cut-scene and keeping them safely in her room thereafter.
                             
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                            • Trenix

                              Trenix Twenty-three is number one

                              I'm sure you know this but for those that don't. The plague is at fault of humans, not rats. They were throwing all sorts of bodily fluids and trash everywhere outside on the streets. Rats also weren't the carriers of the bubonic plague, it was actually rat fleas. As a previous rat owner, let me tell you that they smelled much better than some humans and were very sanitary.
                               
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                              • LuthienNightwolf

                                LuthienNightwolf Oxygen Tank

                                Warm tortilla chips and grape soda, gotta love those ratty smells. ^u^
                                 
                                • Lilliput

                                  Lilliput Supernova

                                  As it happens, I am /very/ familiar with the causative agent of the plague-- I am licensed in microbiology.

                                  I have viewed Yersinia pestis (the microorganism which causes all three symptomatic variants commonly known as 'The Plague') under the microscope. And the fleas which were the carriers were common to many mammals in Europe at that time. (Including, it must be said, rats, though they certainly weren't the main host.)

                                  Well, so long as we're talking microbiology those would be possibly Pseudomonas or Proteus bacterial species you're smelling. ;p

                                  Then again, you may just have rats that stay up all night with tacos and grape Nehi. Who am I to judge?
                                   
                                    Last edited: Jul 12, 2017
                                  • LuthienNightwolf

                                    LuthienNightwolf Oxygen Tank

                                    You're like the female version of Adam Ruins Everything aren't you? lol

                                    Seriously though, I hadn't ever really thought to question *why* rats smelled like that, I just figured it was something in their biology and left it at that - it's not a bad smell, just...distinctive. lol It's a very common observation among rat owners too, this isn't just me being weird ( aside from the sniffing rats part) - usually it's the males that smell like chips and the females that smell like grape soda.
                                     
                                    • Lilliput

                                      Lilliput Supernova

                                      I honestly have no idea if it's a bacterial smell or not, but you just described a /very/ characteristic smell of Pseudomonas cultures when grown in the lab. (Not that sniffing culture plates is a good idea!) So I'm taking a guess! I really don't know what the normal flora of a pet rat is.

                                      Anyway, so as not to derail the thread, I am rather amused and a little amazed that this topic got picked up so quickly as an online cause célèbre involving the game. While I don't worry too much personally about digital guinea pigs, I have to say it wouldn't be a bad thing if CA took a few minutes to edit the code a bit or draw a new habitat for Abby's pet. Should be fun to see what he decides!
                                       
                                        Last edited: Jul 12, 2017
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                                      • Jack Nevermore

                                        Jack Nevermore Void-Bound Voyager

                                        Oh dear, if one hasn't enough problems irl, you gotta make some fictional ones up. You can't abuse or wrongly keep a fictional animal. Hate me all you want for that.

                                        Edit: And no sane person will get a guinea pig and say "I saw how they are to be kept in Stardew Valley"
                                         
                                        • Bon3z

                                          Bon3z Aquatic Astronaut

                                          I don't see the big deal about it. It's a fictional game, not real life. If I knew someone who did this in real life, I'd square them up and take the piggie home. But in a game??? We have players that go on for YEARS who neglect their pigs, cows, etc and I don't see anyone upset about them. :/ What about rabbits? They don't belong in a barn, the belong in a very large fenced area, safe from foxes and wild predators. Where is the concern for them? Oh right, they're fictional, just like the guinea pig Abigail owns.
                                           

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