Pets R Us

@~Pebbles~ wrote:

@johnboy25 wrote:

@~Pebbles~ wrote:

@johnboy25 wrote:

Like Rosepetal, I couldn’t go through it again so I wouldn’t get another dog. I had a black and white lab/spaniel for 16 years and up until the age of 15 she was still fit and healthy, running around the park and going for walks. Towards the end though, she was really struggling and had very little if any quality of life. Actually – hellish as this will sound – she was so bad that I actually hoped she would die in her sleep so I wouldn’t have to take her to the vets.

Wasn’t to be so had to take her, she was struggling to stand let alone walk. Even when she lay down she’d whine. The kindest thing would have been to take her sooner than I did but I didn’t even want to entertain the idea.

jesus christ jon im welling up here.

Ive been through the same with pets of mine. Its the worst thing ever.

Ive had more animals since though as I’d like to think I make a difference to their lives. My 2 cats were rescued kittens and probably would’nt of had much of a life until I took them home.

You’re like my neighbour, he was more upset than I was. Well, that’s not strictly true – I just hide my emotions, always have, whereas he was in tears. Literally, I saw him the following day and his eyes were still bloodshot.

A guy I work with does a lot of work for rescue centres, fundraising and such like so I always give to that. They do some good work and if I was to get another that’s probably where I’d go but it’s doubtful.

Jon, to be honest, Ive always wanted to work with animals, but im not sure i could hack it. Its like you said, Id be in tears daily because im not tough enough to deal with seeing animals in pain or dying.

You should consider another pet, its worth it just knowing you are rescuing them from a life of misery – seems to me youve got a good home waiting.

The thing about having animals as part of your family – is that inevitably they will die before you and the grief on losing a furbaby is devastating. It reminds me of one of Shakespeare’s sonnets where he suffers the grief in advance of loss in regards to a love affair – that he cannot immerse himself in the present love for the knowledge that one day it will be dead.
If we were to go through life in that manner, we would never allow ourselves to experience the joys and passions of caring for another being.
I have never been without animals to love – from family pets as a child to those as an adult – and I have wept tears enough for an ocean, but I have laughed more and loved more and been licked and slobbered and adored more (but enough of my husband) than any one person deserves in a lifetime.
My little cat Speedie was my best friend for 17 years, and when she died four years ago I wanted to go with her – in fact when it’s my turn I intend to be buried in the garden alongside her. I was anguished at her loss then – and I still am now, but it hasn’t stopped me from going on to have more animal family to love and cherish ( my new puppy actually saved my life at one point but that’s another story) and if I could I would have every broken, sad, abandoned creature here with me to be nurtured and protected from the vagaries of a cruel and thoughtless world which treats animals like shyte, there to be used and abused for sport, food and hapless amusement.
If you can give love, warmth, food and protection to the tiniest or the largest of creatures, then please don’t allow the fear of grief to prevent you from doing so – we all have to live with loss at some time or another in our lives – it’s the grown-up and responsible thing to do, to learn to live with dying as with living.
Take a risk and don’t be afraid to really love.