Reasons to Fall in Love with Animals

This book starts from the author’s animal rescue experience and parenting experience and truthfully tells the story of getting along with each animal friend day and night. It is full of humanistic care and healing one another. The author uses humorous and poetic words to tell the different species， living habits， and personality traits of these animal friends， telling us how to get along with them and how to observe them.

Reasons to Fall in Love with Animals

Wang Xiaorou

Mandarin Panorama

February 2024

68.00 (CNY)

Wang Xiaorou

Wang Xiaorou is a member of the Chinese Writers Association， a contracted writer， and a winner of the China Journalism Award.

I haven’t needed an alarm clock for many years because I have two birds at home. One is a parrot that was abandoned after losing a leg and had developed depression by the time it came to me. It used to tear its wings until they bled. The other is a grey magpie， an orphan that was brought to me after its parents died outside the nest for an unknown reason. It was extremely weak， and I once thought it wouldn’t survive.

Animals are more sensitive than humans. Give them a bit of love， and they gain endless will to live. Their efforts are actually healing me.

Every morning， the first thing the two birds need to do upon waking up is to see me. As soon as the sky starts to lighten， the grey magpie begins kicking the door， and the parrot joins in with loud calls， waking me up from my sleep. No matter how deep my sleep is， I get up to open the door for them and let them into the bedroom. They rush in—one perches on the curtain rod to continue sleeping， and the other lies down beside my pillow. With the noise gone， I can sleep a bit longer， but how long depends on when they wake up. These animals that rest half their brains at a time have very short sleep cycles. Often， the parrot stands by my ear， shouting “Mama，” “Baby，” “Hi， little baby，” while the magpie pecks at my teeth with its long beak or even hops on my eyelids.

Such commotion makes it impossible to pretend to sleep.

After the parrot’s “sweet talk，” the magpie has already scattered various foods it usually hides all around my body. When I stand by the bed and look at where I was lying， it’s surrounded by walnut shells， dried egg yolk， bird food， cucumber ends， cherry pits， dirty tissues， coins... Well done! This is the bird expressing its love. Can I scold it? No! I can only clean the bed and throw everything away. The magpie， on the other hand， caws loudly， not understanding why I’m rejecting its gifts.

To owe the birds less， I have to get up early. At least when they start calling， I’m already moving around in front of them. This way， they won’t feel the need to prepare a mess of “breakfast gifts” for their “l(fā)ittle baby.”

It’s not surprising that a parrot can talk， but it’s quite unusual that since recovering， my parrot has become very house-proud. It has a beloved cardboard box where it categorizes and stores its favorite things， layer by layer， so I end up finding my glasses， keys， and pens in its box every day. Well， this ensures I never lose anything.

Despite my several attempts to release it back into the wild， the grey magpie has resolutely decided to stay at home， working even harder to bring me things. It will stuff what it considers delicious into my hair， tuck it in， and stamp on it a couple of times， or lift my shirt and place the food in my waistband if I’m sitting， rejecting my rejection. This results in several mealworms falling out of my pants when I shower at night.

This cross-species “mother-child love” means I have to check my hair and shoulders for bird droppings and my shoes for bugs and rotten fruit before leaving the house.

There’s also a leopard gecko at home. As a cold-blooded animal， it has become good friends with the two birds. They often gather to perform bug-catching shows for me， each showcasing their unique fierceness. However， whenever I call it， the gecko rushes over， its four tiny legs spinning like windmills.

Sometimes when I’m away on business trips and there’s no one at home， I can only talk to them through the camera. The night I return home， opening the door， I find the two birds sleeping by the camera， probably thinking that my voice coming from there means they should stay close and wait. Seeing me enter， the two birds immediately fly over， the wind from their wings filled with love.

Every animal teaches me life lessons on how to treat life， companions， food， and love. Their pure eyes act as a filter， eliminating human arrogance and greed. Spending a lot of time with animals makes me long for nature even more， always wanting to see the freedom and wildness in their natural habitats. This led me to start birdwatching in the wild and conducting biodiversity surveys in many nature reserves.

Year after year， I wait for migrating birds， honoring their ancient commitment to life. Seeing their renewed breeding plumage and their artistic courtship displays in the forest or on the lake always fills me with awe at nature’s wonders.

I also wake up naturally at dawn like a bird， drive to nearby wilderness areas， and observe birds through binoculars. If I’m lucky， I might encounter snakes， weasels， hedgehogs， wild rabbits， and muskrats. By the time I return to the city around seven or eight in the morning， my mind and body are already recharged. Because of the small animals， I find the world so wonderful and people more lovable.

Birdwatching is a ticket to nature. Birdwatching associations and competitions are emerging all over， and understanding is the beginning of protection.

Summer is when most birds are picked up. Fledglings learning to fly often stumble， but nature has its own rules， and sometimes leaving them alone is the best help. Many people ask me what to do if they find a bird， and some even drive to bring me eight magpie fledglings. I always say， “Return these kids to nature!” As long as the young bird has no external injuries， isn’t in extreme weather， and its vital signs are not threatened， there’s no need to interfere. You can place the fledgling on a higher， more concealed platform or tree branch to avoid stray cats. You can also call the local wildlife protection department for guidance on what to do.

Actually， I always feel guilty about the grey magpie at home. Even though it was dying when it came to me， with a bad stomach and unable to stand， and would have died without help， but saving it imprinted on it a memory of humans as its “parents，” making its survival chance in the wild very low. I have tried bringing it to socialize with wild magpie groups， but they mutually reject each other. The wild magpies attack it， and it doesn’t like the birds that look like itself. In the end， I can only let it enthusiastically bring me all sorts of food every day at home. This guilt often makes my heart ache. How I wish it could integrate into a bird flock and breed in the wild. However， to achieve this one day， I still actively prepare for its reintegration into nature.

The uncertainty of nature is fascinating. The same wetland looks different at various times. I don’t categorize myself as a “birder” because adding new species to my list doesn’t attract me much. Even in my neighborhood， I can watch sparrows for hours; their survival stories captivate me more. I don’t have professional “big lenses” to capture high-definition photos in which every feather can be seen， just using my phone to record encounters with them is enough. So， I consider myself a nature observer， quietly appreciating the harmonious coexistence of humans and nature. Nature education is also part of aesthetics; it broadens our horizons and allows us to recognize and enjoy the beauty of nature. I hope more people can start by observing a bird， visiting many places， and feeling nature’s gifts through the records of birds in different seasons. Climbing mountains to pick wild mulberries， tiptoeing to eat wild cherries directly， bending down to snap off freshly sprouted bamboo shoots， gently scooping out tender mushrooms from the soil...

Entering nature， you will find beauty everywhere.

All living things have souls. Let us guard each other with love.

Wang Xiaorou

October 28， 2023