Pets & wildlife

The kings of Persia, Babylon, China, Egypt and Europe collected animals as enthusiastically as they collected exotic plants.

But animals tend to be neglected in modern gardens. They should not be:

• outside is often a better place for pets than inside
• wildlife habitats are good for nature conservation and sustainability
• watching wild animals is a great pleasure

In his book, A pattern language, Christopher Alexander wrote that: 'In a city there are, broadly speakaing, only three kinds of animal: pets, vermin, and animals in the zoo. None of these provides the emotional sustenance nor the ecological connections that are needed'. Further 'There is some evidence which suggests that contact with animals may play a vital role in a child's emotional development'.

We should design for animal life.