Critters That Care

My animals have played an important part in the journey toward improved health and wellness. This is not an overstatement. No, not at all, and many people I have known or met share the same belief.

Whether it is keeping good company or providing the support that only an animal can provide in their non-judgmental way, all my fur-bearing family has helped me through some of the hardest times; more than once and in an ongoing way, including now.

The special bond with our animal companions

I am willing to wager that most who will read this will share in their way the importance our critters are in their own life. As is true in most things, our story of animals and how much they help us will vary as much as the different animals do.

For some, it’s birds, and others among us will say dogs, cats, lizards, or whichever is your favorite. There is a special bond we have with our animal family.

This doesn’t take anything away from the great support we can rely on from our human family. We often hear about the unconditional love we get from our animals, which is very much a thing in my experience.

Understandably, not everyone is in a place where they can have animals, and it might be an alternative to visit with a friend that lives with humans you know.

The healing power of pets

I have some neighbors who always enjoy a visit with my dog, and one always has a treat that Charlie expects every time we see them. His tail wags and he is as excited to see them as they are to see him.

Some will say it is only the treats he is interested in, but he is not motivated by food my Charlie, but the treat is a bonus in this case, apparently. He is always so happy to see her even when she has no treats because he likes her.

He rarely accepts treats from anyone, even me, and is more likely to take a treat from me if his sister (Sophie the bunny) is getting a carrot to treat like kids will do.

As someone who experienced a year of interferon therapy prior to the DAA treatment, I was seriously beaten up by the meds, which really messed with my head and body. I would look over at Jess, my dog, and he would come and snuggle up, and it always lifted me up.

Knowing he was here with me and that he cared made a huge difference in how I was able to cope with the depression and all the other weird stuff happening to me. With no hesitation, I can say he was responsible for my being able to complete the most difficult year of my life yet.

Animals are unique and emotional creatures

It has always been evident to me that people who say that animals have no feelings, in my view clearly have not spent much time around them or were not paying attention. As I mentioned, whether a dog, cat, bird, rabbit, snake, horse, predator, or prey, they all have unique personalities just like humans.

I am not saying they are just like humans any more than they are like each other, but they do feel and care, and to me, that is one of the most important any of us animals can do.