I sat in the vet’s office, keeping vigil, as my dog-child went through the first two of four procedures needed to help bring her eyesight back. She had cataracts in both eyes and had recently gone totally blind. I couldn’t leave her in surgery for half a day and just run errands or whatever. I needed to be there.
The truth is, like many people these days, I think of my animals not as pets but as family members.
When we got home from Mercy’s surgery, I was pretty well prepared. I’d gotten her a playpen, shifting furniture to make room, so she would be safe from injury. However, I didn’t expect to walk the floor until 3:45 in the morning, because the only place where she could find comfort was in my arms. She whimpered most of the next two days and nights, and finally slept well the following night. She’s a little more like herself today but still whines while sitting in my lap as I write this (perhaps commenting on my prose sans sleep.)
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Mercy is on four different eye medications, which she receives two and three times a day. That’s a lot to contend with. But my dog-child will get the best of care, because my heart makes me strong enough to deal with whatever I have to. This is what love is supposed to be like.
Some people still reject the idea that their pets are people, too, and would elect to allow them to go blind. Maybe they were raised with animals who were treated, well, like animals. I know my own parents would never have gotten cataract surgery for any of our dogs, one of whom was blind. I remember looking into her milky eyes and wondering if she could see me when I was feeding her by hand. Treating pets as animals was the old-school way of thinking. For many people nowadays, relationships with their animals go much deeper.
In the morning and at dinnertime at my house, the dog and the cat eat first. We all sleep in the same room, though for some odd reason the cat has taken over the master bath as her domain. No matter, we all end up on the bed at some point. Mornings with my cat on my chest and my dog (and wife) by my side are to be treasured. Nobody loves you so unconditionally as your pets. If we could only love ourselves or other humans as well as we do our four-pawed companions, the world would be a better place.
Many people turn to animals because of their disappointment in the human race. There are so many positive emotions connected with relating to our animals, and having pets teaches us something about living life. No matter how lowly the cur has been treated, they always bounce back to loving someone who treats them with kindness and gives them a little food. And I totally get where they’re coming from.
Dr. Barton Goldsmith is a psychotherapist. Email him at Barton@bartongoldsmith.com.
