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Sat 9 Jul, 2005 08:08 am
Why Dogs Don't Live as Long as People:
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 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!"
My dog is in for a long life.
^^^
Well, my dogs are in for a long life times 2.
Beat that.
I had a yellow lab for almost 15 years, and he was the best friend I'd ever had. Got him when I was 7 as a birthday gift from my parents. What I would give to have that dog with me today. I really believe they are man (and woman!)'s best friend, and I miss mine more and more every day. To all of you with a dog, or a pet of any kind for that matter, I hope they live long and happy lives and may you cherish every moment of those lives with them.
Ah, kids come out with some lovely stuff.
Just hope my dog is around for a long time to come. She's 10 now. I can't imagine her not being there.
Foxy, that is the most adorable dog!
That is a pretty darn cute dog! What kind?
But the question still remains. Why humans live longer than their body size says they should? Generally, animals with the highest meatbolism, and therefore the smallest bodies, have the shortest lives. But humans with medium-sized bodies have life spans as long as elephants. Why?
Sorry coluber, I have to disagree with you size vs. longevity theory.
With dogs - large breeds like Great Danes, St. Bernards or Irish Wolfhounds live only 8 or 9 years, and are lucky if they see 10.
Chihuahua's, Italian Greyhounds, Miniature Pinchers, or thin dogs like Greyhounds or Afgans live 12 to 15 years plus.
What about parrots and tortoises? - they regularly live to well over a hundred.
A parrot is quite light, and a tortoises is as dense an bulky as any St. Bernard.
I don't know the answer, but it's really interesting, I'll be doing more thinking on this.
Obviously, the answer is in the part of the genetic code that we haven't learned to read. I personally would just as soon we didn't figure that one out.
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