A Blog About Golden Retrievers and Dogs in General
Here Jenny and I will write and share our favorite Golden stories and articles. Hopefully we'll give some informative tips on the Golden Retriever breed that may also help those with other breeds. Feel free to comment or add to our blog. In addition, if you would like to write a story, feel free to contact us. Our goal is to keep this light hearted, heart warming, or fun. Thanks for reading!
Lucky Dogs
Written by Administrator Thursday, 30 July 2009 23:11
I often look at my dogs and think of how lucky they are to have chosen Jenny and me as their owners. We certainly give them everything a dog could want or need. But are the dogs really the lucky ones?
As much as I like to think our dogs are lucky to have us, we are equally lucky to have them. We enjoy petting them as much as they like to be petted. They relax us on stressful days and keep us company on lonely ones. They love us unconditionally even as real world unconditional love continues to fade. They keep us warm on a cold winter’s night as well as help us enjoy even the most inclement weather.
Most of the obvious good points of owning a dog have been pointed out numerous times by a multitude of dog owners. I think what I appreciate most about owning our two Golden Retrievers is the attitude it has given Jenny and I towards animals in general. Granted, we were both animal lovers prior to owning our dogs. However, the interaction between human and dog is such that it really stops and makes you think. It continues to amaze Jenny and I how much interaction we have with our dogs. Dogs are so in tune to our moods and personalities that it gives someone a different perspective on animals in general.
Rather than just pets or wild animal in the field, dogs teach us that animals aren’t just a lower level of the food chain. They have thoughts, feelings, and moods just like people. Granted, not all animals are as in tune to humans as dogs and cats. However, the association is still there. No better lesson can be taught to our children. The love of animals can extend to human connections as well. There is no better indicator of a person’s ability to love than how he or she treats animals.
This is not to state some philosophical belief that no animals should be hunted or that in some cases killed. However, in a general sense dogs teach us that animals aren’t just some cuddly thing you see at the zoo or a pet store. They are creatures of this earth just like humans. As a result, we should respect their habitats and treat them with dignity. In addition, there is no reason that animals and humans can’t go exist. How we treat our pets and the animals around us is a good indication of how we’ll treat ourselves going forward. The loss of that actuality can be detrimental, not only to animals, but to all living things. Being at the top of the food chain, we should set the best example.
It is believed that the chicken is a distant relative of the dinosaur Tyrannosaurus rex. Imagine that? However, it makes one stop and think of how easily the tides can change. Though we may stand at the top of the food chain now, we could easily see the roles reversed in future generations. Should that day come, we can only hope our animals treat us with more respect than many of us have treated them.
I think Jenny and I are the lucky ones in our family. We have a house full of wonderful animals and the lessons we’ve learned from them have given us a better sense of being.