A Dog’s Purpose in Life
A Dog's Purpose in Life, from a 4-year-old - It's a good story and the rules at the end are profoundly wise.
Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. 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 we couldn't do anything 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 four-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt Shane might 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, 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, "People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life -- like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?" The four-year-old continued, "Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long."
Remember, if a dog was your teacher you'd learn the really important stuff in life like
When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.
Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.
Take naps.
Stretch before rising.
Run, romp, and play daily.
Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.
On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.
When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
Eat with gusto and enthusiasm. Stop when you have had enough.
Be loyal. Never pretend to be something you're not.
If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by and nuzzle them gently.
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A Dog's Dictionary & Guide:
Leash: A strap that attaches to your collar, enabling you to lead your owner where you want him or her to go. Make sure that you are waiting patiently with leash in mouth when your owner comes home from work. This immediately makes your owner feel guilty and the walk is lengthened by a good 10 minutes.
Dog Bed: Any soft, clean surface, such as a white bedspread, newly upholstered couch or the dry cleaning that was just picked up.
Drool: What you do when your owners have food and you don't.To do this properly, sit as close as you can, look sad and let the drool fall to the floor or better yet on their laps.
Sniff: A social custom to use when you greet other dogs or those people that sometimes smell like dogs.
Garbage Can: A container your neighbors put out weekly to test your ingenuity.Stand on your hind legs and push the lid off with your nose. If you do it right, you are rewarded with food wrappers to shred, beef bones to consume, moldy crusts of bread and sometimes even an old Nike.
Bicycles: Two-wheeled exercise machines, invented for dogs to control body fat. To get maximum aerobic benefit, you must hide behind a bush and dash out, bark loudly and run alongside for a few yards. The rider swerves and falls into the bushes, and you prance away.
Thunder: A signal the world is coming to an end. Humans remain amazingly calm during thunderstorms, so it is necessary to warn them of the danger by trembling, panting, rolling your eyes wildly and following at their heels.
Wastebasket: A dog toy filled with paper, envelopes and old candy wrappers. When you get bored, turn over the basket and strew the papers all over the house. This is particularly fun to do when there are guests for dinner and you prance around with the contents of that very special bathroom wastepaper basket!
Sofas: Are to dogs like napkins are to people. After eating it is polite to run up and down the front of the sofa and wipe your whiskers clean. If there are people sitting on the couch just include them as a handy wipe.
Bath: A process owners use to clean you, drench the floor, walls and themselves. You can help by shaking vigorously and frequently.
Lean: Every good dog's response to the command "sit," especially if your owner is dressed for an evening out. Incredibly effective before black-tie events.
Love: A feeling of intense affection, given freely and without restriction, shared by you and your owner. Show it by wagging your tail
Marissa
Help Save One
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Care & Management of Humans
1. You should have your human fixed, even if it's a purebred human. There are too many humans, and our big cities are overpopulated with them to the point where we are unable to feed and shelter all of them.
2. If your human talks too much, we suggest using a shock collar.
3. If you must breed your human, even though we do not believe there are any good reasons for breeding humans, at least do genetic screening to help ensure your human is a healthy one that conforms to breed standards.
4. Some humans are very hyper and will pull on their leash constantly. For these extreme cases, we recommend a choker collar.
5. If your human is aggressive and frequently starts fights, please put a muzzle on it when you take it out in public.
6. You should feed your human something better than Purina Human Chow.
7. If your human is sick, you should not put it down just because you can't afford the cost of surgery. You should rearrange your budget or mortgage your dog house.
8. Don't buy a human for your puppy just to teach it responsibility.
9. You should always carry "money" treats to reward your human. Humans love money and will do almost anything for money treats.
10. If your human attacks a dog, it should be put to sleep.
11. If you already own a male & a female human, you should be careful about getting a third human. Two males will often fight very aggressively for the attention of the female, and two females will often do the same over a male human.
12. A good way to test a human for temperament is to takes its money or food away from it to see if it reacts aggressively.
13.Warning! Some humans have a bad habit of peeing in the water bowl; if your human continuously goes to the bathroom in the house, we suggest you chain it outside.
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MEMOS TO: GOD FROM: THE FAMILY DOG
Dear God: Why do humans smell the flowers, but seldom, if ever, smell one another?
Dear God: When we get to heaven, can we sit on your couch? Or is it still the same old story?
Dear God: Why are there cars named after the jaguar, the cougar, the mustang, the colt, the stingray, and the rabbit, but not ONE named for a dog? How often do you see a cougar riding around? We do love a nice ride! Would it be so hard to rename the "Chrysler Eagle" the "Chrysler Beagle"?
Dear God: If a dog barks his head off in the forest and no human hears him, is he still a bad dog?
Dear God: We dogs can understand human verbal instructions, hand signals, whistles, horns, clickers, beepers, scent ID's, electromagnetic energy fields, and Frisbee flight paths. What do humans understand?
Dear God: More meatballs, less spaghetti, please.
Dear God: Are there mailmen in Heaven? If there are, will I have to apologize?
Dear God: Let me give you a list of just some of the things I must remember to be a good dog.
1. I will not eat the cats' food before they eat it or after they throw it up.
2. I will not roll on dead skunks, possums, fish, etc., just because I like the way they smell.
3. I will not munch on "leftovers" in the kitty litter box, although they are tasty.
4. The diaper pail is not a cookie jar.
5. The sofa is not a 'face towel'. Neither are Mom and Dad's laps.
6. The garbage collector is not stealing our stuff.
7. My head does not belong in the refrigerator.
8. I will not bite the officer's hand when he reaches in for Mom's driver's license and registration.
9. I will not play tug-of-war with Dad's underwear when he's on the toilet.
10. Sticking my nose into someone's crotch is an unacceptable way of saying "hello".
11. I don't need to suddenly stand straight up when I'm under the coffee table.
12. I must shake the rainwater out of my fur before entering the house - not after.
13. I will not throw up in the car.
14. I will not come in from outside and immediately drag my butt.
15. I will not sit in the middle of the living room and lick my crotch when we have company.
16. The cat is not a 'squeaky toy' so when I play with him and he makes that noise, it's usually not a good thing.
And, finally, my last two questions . . .
Dear God: Why do humans only have 10 Commandments and dogs have 16?
P.S. Dear God: When I get to Heaven may I have my testicles back?
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I AM YOUR DOG (author unknown)
I am your dog, and I have a little something I'd like to whisper in your ear.
I know that you humans lead busy lives. Some have to work, some have children to raise. It always seems like you are running here and there, often much too fast, often never noticing the truly grand things in life.
Look down at me now, while you sit at your computer. See the way my dark brown eyes look at yours? They are slightly cloudy now. That comes with age. The gray hairs are beginning to ring my soft muzzle. You smile at me; I see love in your eyes.
What do you see in mine? Do you see a spirit? A soul inside, who loves you as no other could in the world? A spirit that would forgive all trespasses of prior wrong doing for just a simple moment of your time? That is all I ask. To slow down, even for a few minutes to be with me. So many times you have been saddened by the words you read on that screen, of other of my kind passing.
Sometimes we die young and oh so quickly, sometimes so suddenly it wrenches your heart out of your throat. Sometimes, we age so slowly before your eyes that you may not even seem to know until the very end, when we look at you with grizzled muzzles and cataract clouded eyes. Still the love is always there, even when we must take that long sleep, to run free in a distant land.
I may not be here tomorrow; I may not be here next week.
Someday you will shed the water from your eyes, that humans do when deep grief fills their souls and you will be angry at yourself that you did not have just "One more day" with me.
Because I love you so, your sorrow touches my spirit and grieves me. We have NOW together. So come, sit down here next to me on the floor, and look deep into my eyes. What do you see? If you look hard and deep enough we will talk, you and I, heart to heart.
Come to me not as "alpha" or as "trainer" or even "Mom or Dad", come to me as a living soul and stroke my fur and let us look deep into one another's eyes and talk. I may tell you something profound about myself, or even life in general. You decided to have me in your life because you wanted a soul to share such things with. Someone very different from you, and here I am.
I am a dog, but I am alive. I feel emotion, I feel physical senses, and I can revel in the differences of our spirits and souls. I do not think of you as a "Dog on two feet" -- I know what you are. You are human in all your quirkiness and I love you still.
Now come sit with me on the floor. Enter my world and let time slow down if only for 15 minutes. Look deep into my eyes, and whisper to my ears. Speak with your heart, with your joy and I will know your true self.
We may not have tomorrow, and life is oh so very short.
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I RESCUED A HUMAN TODAY
Her eyes met mine as she walked down the corridor peering apprehensively into the kennels. I felt her need instantly and knew I had to help her. I wagged my tail, not too exuberantly, so she wouldn't be afraid.
As she stopped at my kennel I blocked her view from a little accident I had in the back of my cage. I didn't want her to know that I hadn't been walked today. Sometimes the shelter keepers get too busy and I didn't want her to think poorly of them.
As she read my kennel card I hoped that she wouldn't feel sad about my past. I only have the future to look forward to and want to make a difference in someone's life.
She got down on her knees and made little kissy sounds at me. I shoved my shoulder and side of my head up against the bars to comfort her. Gentle fingertips caressed my neck; she was desperate for companionship.
A tear fell down her cheek and I raised my paw to assure her that all would be well. Soon my kennel door opened and her smile was so bright that I instantly jumped into her arms. I would promise to keep her safe. I would promise to always be by her side. I would promise to do everything I could to see that radiant smile and sparkle in her eyes. I was so fortunate that she came down my corridor. So many more are out there who haven't walked the corridors. So many more to be saved. At least I could save one.
I rescued a human today.
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Ten Dog Commandments
I. My life is likely to last 10 to 15 years. Any separation from you will be painful remember that before you get me.
II. Give me time to understand what you want of me.
III. Place your trust in me- it is crucial to my well being.
IV. Do not be angry at me for long, and do not lock me up as punishment.
V. You have your work, your entertainment, and your friends. I only have you.
VI. Talk to me sometimes. Even if I don't understands your words, I understand your voice when it is speaking to me.
VII. Be aware that how ever you treat me, I will never forget.
VIII. Remember before you hit me that I have teeth that could easily hurt you, but I choose not to bite you because I love you.
IX. Before you scold me for being uncooperative, obstinate, or lazy, ask you self if something might be bothering me. Perhaps I might not be getting the right food, or I have been out to long, or my heart is getting to old and weak.
X. Take care of me when I get old; you too will grow old. Go with me on difficult journeys. Never say: "I cannot bear to watch" or "Let it happen in my absence." Everything is easier for me if you are there, even my death.
Remember that I love you.
Author: Stan Rawlinson
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What I learned from you
What I learned from you was it is okay to play That it is okay to bark when ever I want
I learned it is okay to trust humans
And it is okay to let down my guard and love again
but most important that it is okay to be me
there are things you have learned from me too it is okay to talk baby talk and it is okay for you to fall in love with me from the first minute we meet.
but most importantly it is okay to love me beyond all measure.
You and i learned we both like seeing me dressed in cute clothes.
We both love endless trips to pet stores for those all important toys and treats.
You know be both love strutting down the street showing me off.
And we both know it is beneficial for me to sleep beside you every night.
I have to be there to keep you warm and safe, and yes I enjoy it too.
Soon a time will come when you have to let me go, whether it will be to my new forever home or
for me to cross the Rainbow Bridge. Either way I will be both happy and sad. Because nothing
can ever replace you in my heart. You nursed me when I was sick, cheered me on to attack my
stuffed toy that deserved a smackdown. As much as we both want to we cannot be together forever.
I was placed here in your home to grow become who I was meant to be all along.
A Boston Terrier that knows they are loved beyond all else. A boston terrier that knows kindness,
warmth, safety and a full tummy. You have taught me so much that I can never begin to thank you
enough. So please do not mourn me no matter where I am, either way I am surrounded by others
that love me too. So in my memory continue to open you heart and home to others just like me.
And this is the Boston Terrier's Prayer
By Marlana S. Anderson
aka The Midnight writer
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