I am feeling angry, frustrated, confined and helpless with our political, health and environmental situation. So I thought I would write about something I really enjoy and know about. I am an old, retired veterinarian with about sixty years of experience thinking about and dealing with the health needs of dogs and cats. In that time my animal friends have provided me with an income, their company and their friendship.
So maybe if you are not a pet owner, I suggest that during these troubling times you consider exploring the idea of owning a pet. A cat or a dog. Perhaps an older cat from your local humane society or animal rescue organization would be a good idea because most people are adopting dogs and there seems to be an abundance of cats available. Many of these cats have been abandoned because of their owner's home loss and in some cases death.
If it's been a long time since you had a pet you may have forgotten the bond that develops between a pet and owner. Some examples may remind you of extreme cases in the news. In severe cases of mental depression, pets have given their owners a reason to get outside themselves. They are used for PTSD patients, people with severe medical conditions and even for rehabilitation of prisoners. In these cases they provide a reason to focus on problems outside an individual’s dark thoughts.
Pets help with your own loneliness and medical recovery. If you are worried about your health, your aging, or the stress of everyday living, sometimes caring for another creature can free your mind for more pleasant thoughts.
For many people, cats and dogs provide a friend and constant companion to relieve their loneliness. For an older pet owner this friendship may last through their lifetimes. This means cats, some who can easily live to eighteen or twenty, have lost their owners to severe illness and death and may find themselves abandoned and in jail like cages that they do not understand. So if you need companionship maybe the surviving cat from a lost home may need it more.
In shelters, older cats, as opposed to kittens, may find it hard to get a new home. So adopting an older cat may fill two needs, yours and the cats. The main advantage for you of adopting an older cat is that they are house trained and their personalities are fixed. Their activities, interactions with people and behavior is usually more settled than it is with a kitten. You will know very soon if they are a lap cat, if they enjoy grooming or if they care about you. If you are unsure of choosing a particular animal, many shelters have a foster care program that lets you try out the compatibility of a particular cat.
In my case I adopted a older cat named Isabelle. I got her six years ago after she was brought to the shelter because her owner had died. One day my wife came with me as I was volunteering at the geriatric care facility of our local cat rescue facility. I think there was love at first sight as the two interacted. Isabelle saw my wife, put her paws around her shoulders and by the next day I was ordered to bring her home.
It is a relationship that means a lot to all three of us. A few years later I was taken by ambulance from home in the middle of the night as Isabelle watched. During the days I was in the hospital my wife told me Isabelle hid in a closet and only came out when she was encouraged to come out for food or her litter box. When I got home she showed up to greet me, standing at the door and making eye contact to make sure it was me.
Both of us are a little slower now but she manages to get on the couch with a step stool to spend part of the evening with me watching TV, leading me to her food dish or checking me out as I clean her litter box. The rest of the time she is busy checking the view out the window, taking naps, maybe sunning herself, maybe passing by for a scratch under her chin, maybe hoping for an extra snack.
So as I isolate myself from most of society for the time being, Isabelle my cat helps me to focus on obligations outside my own needs. We are pals. I know that in this world I have this special friend.
