Why Pets Are Important

I've started reading Reader's Digest when I'm on the Stair Master of late. Last month, RD did a feature called "Amazing Pets," detailing some awesome animals that have saved lives, or just been plain awesome (a surfing dog? Cool!).

Armed with this month's edition, I boarded the Stair Master a couple of days ago and flipped open to the letters to the editor. The first letters were in response to "Amazing Pets." Of the four published letters, two were disparaging:

How embarassing for Americans to be so obsessed with pets. We're a bunch of besotted fools. Pets are basically useless. Do they pay taxes? Do they vote? Do they invest? Do they buy stuff? Do they hire people? No. They sleep most of the time, waddle over to their food bowls, and poop the food out on the lawn. --S. Foster, Denver, Colorado

And:

I'm so sick of pets! I rolled my eyes when I saw this issue's cover, and I didn't buy it like I usually do. Pet's have become the opium of the masses--a crutch. --B. Ryan, Chicago, Illinois

A bunch of reactions rushed through me--first, of course, anger and disdain for two women who obviously don't have hearts if they think pets are so stupid, followed by a grudging admiration that in addition to the letters going on and on about how awesome pets are, Reader's Digest was willing to publish an opposing point of view. Let's face it--not everyone likes animals. I also smiled as I thought of my English family and how much they adored their cats, dogs and tortoises. It's not just an "American thing."

I'm inclined to distrust people who actively dislike animals. I think it's one thing to be wary of dogs (I've been known to be, and I hate-with-the-power-of-a-thousand-suns when they jump on me), or even cats (claws, after all, do cause pain). People who don't dislike them but don't feel the need to have them don't bother me--I can understand from first-hand experience that having pets in the house is a lot of work.

But yes, the people who actively dislike animals make me nervous.

To a point, I can agree that sometimes we take this pet fixation too far. I once knew a lady who carted her dogs around in a baby stroller, and I've seen other people do this, too. Overkill, people. Overkill.

(And I'm probably not exactly the person who should talk, with my "letters to the internet" from Bella and Duchess, and the fact that Millie has her own Facebook account.)

That said, I really got pissy reading these letters that pets are somehow useless. Children don't pay taxes, vote, invest, or hire people. They sleep a lot and eat a lot and poop a lot. Does S. Foster think children are useless, too?

Hell, I pay taxes and vote, but I'm not into investing much and I have never hired anyone. I've been limiting my buying to groceries and a few new fall clothes of late. I sleep a lot these days (well, I sleep 7-8 hours a night, I just start later and get up later), and I eat and poop. Am I useless?

Something tells me that these letter-writers have had a bad experience with animals. If that's the case, I'm certainly very sorry for them, but they're arguing a losing case. Animals are not useless, they're not a crutch, or the "opium of the masses." They're living beings with feelings--yes, I said it. I'm a firm believer that animals have feelings. As sophisticated as human feelings? No. But I've had Millie for eleven years and you will never convince me that this cat doesn't feel some type of love or affection for me in addition to her dependence on me.

Three years ago, I was going through a very stressful time in my life. I was dealing with anxiety and depression that actually kept me home from work sometimes in a state of panic. I was living alone--save for Millie--in an unfamiliar city that never felt safe to me, or very much like a place I could call home. My nearest friends were in Oakland and Sacramento--an hour in either direction in good traffic--and my parents were nearly two hours away. Sometimes the only thing that kept me from falling into a deeper depression was the simple presence of a warm, purring cat. A cat who has an uncanny knack for figuring out when I need her nearby.

I've had animals all my life. My family has had several cats and two dogs over the years, and through these animals I learned valuable lessons in compassion, taking care of someone who can't necessarily take care of himself, patience, and responsibility. Through my love of animals I have met some wonderful people who fight the good fight to find forever homes for animals and educate the public about spaying and neutering.

Useless? I hardly think so.

Besides, we owe it to animals to take care of them. I recently discussed this with Marian, the adoption coordinator I volunteer with who helped me through the Peanuts' two week stay with me. My argument is simple: human beings domesticated wild dogs and cats over thousands of years to create the models we have today--and those models are not equipped to live in an urban jungle on their own. We domesticated them, therefore, we owe it to them to do everything we can to make their lives as humane and easy as possible. This is why we spay and neuter, why we promote an indoor-only life for cats, training for dogs.

So yes, in playing around on Facebook, I created an account for my cat. Harley may get his own page soon, if I get bored enough sometime. My special-order holiday cards are signed "Love, Meg, Millie and Harley." I will blog about them, and write letters from Bella and Duchess in an attempt to add some humor to my blog as I update Mom--who is thousands of miles away--that her own beloved cats are doing just fine. I will continue to adore these cats and worry about them, to give them the care that I believe they deserve.

Those who don't understand can make their snide remarks. I'll just be on the couch with a cat at my feet and another on my lap, feeling my blood pressure drop to healthy limits and the warm vibrations of a purring cat go through my lap and straight to my heart.