Dog Poems & Prose,
Serious #2
Rites of Passage
Some of the most poignant moments I spend as a veterinarian are those spent with my clients assisting the transition of my animal patients from this world to the next. When living becomes a burden, whether from pain or loss of normal functions, I can help a family by ensuring that their beloved pet has an easy passing.
Making this final decision is painful, and I have often felt powerless to comfort the grieving owners. That was before I met Shane.
I had been called to examine a ten-year-old blue heeler named Belker who had developed a serious health problem. The dog's owners - Ron, his wife, Lisa, and their little boy, Shane - were all very attached to Belker and they were hoping for a miracle. I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer.
I told the family there were no miracles left for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home. As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for the four-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt Shane could learn something from the experience.
The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on.
Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away.
The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a while after Belker's death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives.
Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, "I know why."
Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me - I'd never heard a more comforting explanation.
He said, "Everybody is born so that they can learn how to live a good life - like loving everybody and being nice, right?" The four-year-old continued, "Well, animals already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long."
-- Author Unknown
Hear our humble prayer, O God, for our friends the animals,
especially for animals who are suffering; for any that are hunted or
lost, or deserted or frightened or hungry; for all that must be put
to death. We entreat for them all thy mercy and pity and for those
who deal with them we ask a heart of compassion and gentle
hands and kindly words. Make us, ourselves, to be true friends to
animals and so to share the blessings of the merciful.
-- Albert Schweitzer
I think I could turn and live with animals, they're so placid
and self-contain'd,
I stand and look at them long and long.
They do not sweat and whine about their condition,
They do not lie awake in the dark and weep for their sins,
They do not make me sick discussing their duty to God,
Not one is dissatisfied, not one is demented with the mania of
owing things,
Not one kneels to another, nor to his kind that lived thousands
of years ago,
Not one is respectable or unhappy over the whole earth.
-- Walt Whitman
When I got my new dog...
I asked for strength that I might rear her perfectly;
I was given weakness that I might feed her more treats.
I asked for an obedient dog that I might feel proud;
I was given stubbornness that I might feel humble;
I asked for compliance that I might feel masterful;
I was given a clown that I might laugh.
I asked for a companion that I might not feel lonely;
I was given a best friend that I would feel loved.
I got nothing I asked for,
But everything that I needed.
-- Author Unknown
This is Heaven
A man and his dog were walking along a road. The man was just enjoying the scenery, when it suddenly occurred to him that he was dead. He remembered dying and the dog had been dead for years. He wondered where the road was leading them.
After a while they came to a high white stone wall along one side of the road. It looked like fine marble. At the top of a long hill it was broken by a tall arch that glowed in the sunlight. When he was standing before it he saw a magnificent gate in the arch that looked like mother of pearl, and the street that led to the gate looked like pure gold.
He and the dog walked toward the gate, and as he got closer he saw a man at a desk to one side. When he was close enough he out, "Excuse me, where are we?"
"This is heaven, sir," the man answered. "Wow! Would you happen have some water?" the man asked. "Of course, sir. Come right and I'll have some ice water brought right up." The man gestured, and the gate began to open. "Can dog come in too?" the traveler asked. "I'm sorry, sir, but we don't accept pets. The man thought a moment and then turned back toward the road and continued the way he had been going.
After another long walk, and at the top of another long hill, he came to a dirt road which led through a farm gate that looked as if it had never been closed. There was no fence. As he approached the gate he saw a man inside, leaning against a tree and reading a book. "Excuse me" he called to the reader, "Do you have any water?" "Yeah, sure, there's a pump over there." The man pointed to a place that couldn't be seen outside the gate. "Come on in."
"How about my friend here?" the traveler gestured to the dog "There should be a bowl by the pump." They went through the gate and, sure enough, there was an old fashioned hand pump with a bowl beside it. The traveler filled the bowl and took a long drink himself. When they were full, he and the dog walked back toward the man, who was standing by then, waiting for them.
"What do you call this place?" he asked. "This is heaven," was the answer.
"Well, that's confusing," he said, "the man down the road said that was heaven too."
"Oh, you mean the place with the gold street and pearly gates? That's hell."
"Doesn't it make you mad for them to use your name like that?"
"No. I can see how you might think so, but we're just happy that they screen out the jerks who'll leave their dogs behind.
-- Author Unknown
Just My Dog
He's just my dog.
He is my other eyes that can see above the clouds; my other ears that hear above the winds.
He has told me more than a thousand times over that I am his reason for
being --
by the way he rests against my leg,
by the way he thumps his tail at my smallest smile,
by the way he shows his hurt when I leave without taking him.
(I think it makes him sick with worry when he is not along to care for me).
When I am wrong, he is delighted to forgive.
When I am angry, he clowns to make me smile.
When I am happy, he is joy unbounded.
When I am a fool, he ignores it.
When I succeed, he brags.
Without him, I am only another person.
With him, I am all powerful.
He has taught me the meaning of devotion is loyalty itself.
With him, I know the secret comfort and a private peace.
He has brought me understanding where before I was ignorant.
His head on my knee can heal my human hurts.
His presence by my side is protection against my fears of dark and unknown things.
He has promised to wait for me ... whenever ... wherever ... in case I need him, and I expect I will, as I always have.
Who is he? -- He's just -- MY DOG!
-- Author Unknown