Pets

I grew up having pets in my home. At different times we had a dog, a cat, a rabbit, three different birds, and various fish. I think my sister had a mouse once for a few days until my mom made her get rid of it. I'm really glad that I had pets as a child.

I wouldn't go so far as to say that kids NEED pets in order to have a well-rounded childhood. But having pets certainly teaches you some valuable lessons. Since most pets have such a short lifespan, children have the opportunity to really understand what life is all about in a gentle but very personal way. Kids can learn about love, companionship, responsibility, respect, sickness, and eventually death. Having a pet gave me the so-you're-trapped-here-too-? camaraderie that I needed when I was mad at my parents and sisters, the understanding that every living thing has feelings, the pride of learning to care for something that depended on me, and the insight that you can only control yourself and can't control other people/things.

I have four cats now. I love them dearly. Our skinny old girl cat, Beanie, has chronic kidney disease. She's been doing okay so far, but the reality of the situation is that at best she probably only has a couple of years left. And our orange boy cat, Saucy, is getting sick now, too. He got some blood work done today... I'm bracing myself for what I'm sure will be bad news when the vet calls with the results in a few days.

The kids are still pretty young. I know that they'll notice if one of the cats is gone, but I don't think they'll immediately understand the finality of the situation if any of the cats dies. They've seen dead animals on the side of the road and I've told them the truth, that the snake (or whatever) is dead. I've said that being dead is like sleeping for a long time and never waking up. But I don't just say that the animal is asleep, because I don't feel like that's honest. I try to be honest. Shots hurt (but they make you hurt less in the long run than if you didn't get them), mommies and daddies disagree (but that's okay and we still love each other), and animals die (but that's just part of life).

Despite all of the pets that I've had and lost, I'm still really upset to think about losing one of my fluffy little fur babies. "Better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all," right? But I'm still going to cry my eyes out when I get that call in a few days.