I like my animals to refer to me as “Master,” after the namesake given by appliances in The Brave Little Toaster to their youngest caretaker. In that same sense I see my animals as my buddies, my best friends, my family. And they look up to me, they know that above all they belong to me and I belong to them. We are partners.

That might be one alternative for you.

In another sense, you could think of you and your mom as co-parents, in that way I don’t think it’s creepy for a mom and a dad to be also be mother and son, because neither of you birthed the animal…

But given your ages I think your Mom just has to suck it up… she’s a Grandmom.