Outlandish creatures

Telluride Daily Planet, Friday, March 14, 2025

“Petting, scratching and cuddling a dog could be as soothing to the mind and heart as deep meditation and almost as good for the soul as a prayer.” – Dean Koontz

“There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats.” Albert Schweitzer

It is a strange thing to have animals accompany us in our daily lives. A creature at our side, adapting to the human world, whether it be to herd sheep, wait for us patiently in a high-rise apartment, or to keep the garage free of mice. Domesticated animals have been tending to their people for thousands of years, and it seems to me we need them now more than ever.

Though every single blessed thing on Earth is strange when you really consider it, a loved pet watching and accompanying us is, in my opinion, one of life’s most enigmatic familiarities.

When we got a dog five years ago, it had been 45 years since I’d last had one; so I guess you could say I was ready. During my childhood, we were mostly a family of strange pets: a duck named Ping, who’d imprinted on us and wouldn’t swim without one of his humans; a guinea pig, Max, who died of a broken heart (the vet told us this, after we’d returned home from vacation), and a number of high-profile rabbits (huge and white Mr. K. at the top of the quirk list) who were free-roaming house pets.

At the age of 12 with all my older siblings gone, we finally got a dog, a setter who lasted far longer than he should have (17), probably because of his soft-boiled-egg breakfasts and the water gingerly given to him through a hose.

Like most pet people, I think my current dog is the most outlandish creature one could ever hope to “own,” but, frankly, most pets are quirky, and the love they spawn is often over the top. We animal-loving humans know that even the mere thought bubble of a loved pet can boost us in ways we don’t quite understand. But we do understand a number of the potential health benefits of owning pets, and from the point of view of someone still relatively new to the dog pep squad, at least, I’m sharing my list.

A dog can get you outside walking! More and more, the benefits of simple walking have come to the forefront of health reporting. Research indicates it can augment mental well-being, lower stress, improve sleep and creativity, reduce risk of chronic disease and increase longevity.

Stalwart walkers know this. It’s fine with or without a fur friend, of course, but my morning walk is never in question, anymore, whether it is snowing or sub zero or already hot. It is good for me, and I relish it.

Pets can reduce the stress hormone cortisol and increase both serotonin (physical contact, companionship) and oxytocin (eye contact, physical contact, play). In short, they can help us feel physically and emotionally better. They can give meaning to our lives, comfort us and help us feel safe. One study showed that owning a pet could reduce cognitive aging by 15 years!

We have all heard innumerable pet stories of rescues, reunions, intelligent life saving and alerting owners to health crises and danger. Emotional support and therapy animals — and even the less heroic variety —- serve tirelessly. Thus are we in a position, as bipeds, to marvel at the very virtues visible in them that we desperately need more of — and more attention on — in the human world.

We can admire their courage, steadfastness and “selflessness,” for lack of a better word. We can appreciate their bodily calm, as well as their embodied enthusiasm. We can only hope to arrive at forgiving as quickly; and we can certainly feel their gratitude.

Of course, what we do with pets, we also over-do. Thousands of them are put down daily in shelters across the U.S. alone, despite an estimated 66% of U.S. homes having them. Many are mistreated. The pet industry in the U.S., estimated at approximately 150 billion per year, is over half the global spend. In short, they are here with us for better and for worse.

On a personal note, our own dwarf dog (what Corgi means in Welsh) brightens our world. If it were up to him, he would never leave our sides. He never wakes up in the wrong side of the crate and is as over-the-top excited for a tiny Milk Bone as for a piece of raw meat. His combination of ingratiation to humans, stubbornness, smarts and sweetness makes us laugh and feel good daily. And I’m really not going to argue with that.