our furry families

Ruth Ostrow writes a very good column in The Australian's Weekend Australian Magazine. I really like this article she wrote about pets.

Give pets a chance

Ruth Ostrow | May 03, 2008

I WAS feeling worried the other evening. Someone close to me was having an operation and I couldn't eat. About 6 o'clock my two cats came in for dinner, as they always do.

But instead of going to their bowls they came over to where I was sitting by the TV and refused to move. I carried them over to their food. One sniffed and walked away; the other had a few mouthfuls and left the rest. They both returned to the couch and sat by me.

Later the call that I was waiting for came through. All was well. I went and made myself a sandwich. The cats followed and hungrily finished their food.

A vet confirmed this was not magic. It’s the intuition shared between master and pet. A wonderful, unconscious connection whereby the animal senses pain, sadness or anxiety and reacts accordingly. I once witnessed the loyalty of a dog who sensed his master was soon to die, and sat at the foot of the bed whimpering before an operation that did, indeed, lead to the man’s death.

Pets can vibe into us, but also seem to exert a wonderful, unseen power over us. American Heart Association research has found that a 12-minute visit with man’s best friend helps heart and lung function by lowering blood pressure, diminishing the release of harmful hormones and decreasing anxiety among hospitalised heart-failure patients. Animal-assisted therapy is now being used by a wide range of health professionals and correctional facilities.

However, despite the powerful cross-pollination between pet and owner, I was shocked to hear that my friend was not able to pet-sit in his own home due to the body corporate’s rules. And I was surprised to find myself discriminated against recently when trying to rent, due to an archaic no-pets policy. For many families there’s a brutal choice to be made in this rental crisis: a home or the family dog.

I get particularly angry at the constant letters I receive from people who question animal rights, such as a recent Modern Dilemma from someone who didn’t think the hospital MRI machine should be used after-hours on animals.

In stark contrast, Japanese companies have begun giving employees a monthly “family allowance” for their pets. With the trend to living alone on the increase, pets are the new children in some countries. Let’s adjust our thinking to acknowledge their value in this lonely modern world.

ostrowr@theaustralian.com.au

I don't like to use the word pet, but prefer four-legged companions, indeed furry family members. Even though they are dependent upon people, especially for food, we also depend on them.

Fatty and Keiser were the best cats. Fatty was particularly attached to me and followed me around like a dog, which was very unfeline behaviour. Keiser loved people and was very much a lap cat. Everybody who met them thought they were the best cats. I could never replace them.

Kane is the best dog and great company. Check out his blog.

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I meant to clean the house but spent most of the day resting on the couch, catching up on the latest episodes of Smallville, Doctor Who and Battlestar Galactica, as well as an afternoon nap. Ah, there's nothing like a good veg.