Through the years, I have received several letters on this topic. Most, whether positive or negative, have been logical and friendly while others have been mean-spirited or dismiss the entire Pet Bird Report simply because of its use of the word. Since I make a policy of not editing the content of most of the articles in the PBR, I always leave it in while other bird magazines edit the word out because it is not a universally accepted word. But certainly whether a person uses it in their articles or not should not be the decisive factor in determining their credibility. There is nothing cuter than a frisky little puppy except maybe a furry ball of a kitten.
Mammal babies are quite different in appearance and behavior from their adult counterparts.
It is very obvious when they are babies and quite evident that they will not continue to look or act the same as they grow up. There are even words for the babies of dogs and cats which we humans often keep as pets. Sometimes we call them chicks. I may start using it in my articles. The dictionary is full of all sorts of new words that sounded strange when people first started using them.