Do you remember your first dog or cat? Perhaps even your first boa constrictor? Whatever your preference, pets can play a huge role in our lives, even becoming full-fledged family members. But is domestication really in an animal’s best interest? Does pet ownership create a loving bond between human and animal, or does it only serve our own interests?
It is a mistake to assume the worst when there is so much evidence of the best. My friends and I pass this idea back and forth whenever one of us is in danger of losing faith in people and their relationships with animals.
We talk about these things because we are exposed to so much cruelty in this work. Where do we turn to maintain our humanism?
For my part, I turn to Gracie and to Ardy. Gracie is eight. She was adopted from an orphanage in China. Ardy is two and she was adopted from an animal shelter in Washington. On some morning, I find they have divided the bed – dog at the foot and daughter at the head. Other times they share a pillow. They do not like being apart.
I think of how rich my life is with them in it. I think of impoverished it would be without.
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