HISTORY OF PETS
Pets have been portrayed in history...
not only for their companionship but also the service they give to our lives. They bring to our lives not only unlimited joy but also work for and with us protecting, healing, and rescuing. In recent years the pet industry in North America has boomed creating services and retail to feed, dress, and entertain comforts for our dear furry friends. Stats indicate that in North America there are 2 out of 5 homes that have dogs as pets.
France 30,000 years ago paints images of many animals displaying the importance they play with in our basic survival. Cats 60,000 B.C. where transported to the Island of Cyprus as an important part of a healthier household and the protection of grain by keeping away pests. Ancient Egyptian cats gained their popularity and where not just protectors from pests but became respected companions. Cats where so revered and worshiped that they where mummified in sanctioned plots with mummified mice for their after life. It was written that no cat was to be exported from Egypt and no one shall kill a cat as the penalty was death.
Many dogs where seen useful to tribes & communities as early as 4240 B.C. On an Ancient Egyptian relief painting (displayed at the Royal Museum in Victoria B.C. October 2004) was a multi-colored hound dog depicted as large as the Pharaoh indicting the dog’s hierarchy of importance. The Papillon (Butterfly ears) small breed of dogs where seen as portrait companions to children, gents, & ladies in the 14 to 18th century oil paintings. Standard Poodles in France became the official dog of court during the 17th century.
The Catholic religion in the 1800’s Europe was to doom all cats to death. A cat ‘hater’, Pope Gregory IX declared the cat to be a ‘diabolical creature’. Anyone with a cat would be deemed a witch and burned to death on a stake with the cat. The domestic cat was very important to keeping away the vermin hence the ‘black plague’ that swept across Europe because of the extermination of all cats. European settlers traveling the seas to North America brought cats to kill vermin in their ships. Eventually the felines found themselves purring near warm hearths and winning back the hearts of the new North American settlers.
Guide dogs and Pet Therapy...
have become common and successful programs involving human and animal cohesion of love, responsibility, compassion, and community. Guide dog programs for the blind were started in Seattle, U.S.A 1942. Originally the campuses training dogs and people where created to help out the blinded WWII veterans. The first graduate of the program was German Shepard dog named ‘Blondie’ assisting with Sgt. Leonard Foulk.
Most pets have a large capacity to give genuine affection & unconditional love never judging people based on human perceptions. Pet Therapy has helped many people relate to their personal development, soul searching, and health. When children grow up exposed to pets they tend to develop empathy which helps them to think of others outside of their own needs. Seniors fair better with longer and happier life spans when they are being able to walk, touch, and play with these special pets.
Individuals with mental illness who are integrated with pets feel safe to show loving emotions and gentleness. This interaction helps relieve depressions and improve self esteem. Prisons for women and men have been developing programs for inmates who qualify to take animal care courses and dog training. This not only helps the neglected and/or abandoned pets that animal shelters have rescued but helps inmates with skills & self respect for themselves resulting in less violence within the prison enviroment.
Books & Film I enjoy and reference:
TV Dog Whisper: Cesar is incredible on his insightful knowledge of our dogs. I was just introduced to him 2008 and can say he is a must watch for anyone who is learning about the nuisances of dog language and that ALL dogs want jobs... they are our loyal guides and they always tell the truth. Cesar 's books and TV show is the BEST!
When Your Animal Dies: Sylvia Barbanell, Spiritualist Press, London 1979
As a child I asked adults, "what happens to animals when they die?" This wonderful story telling book came to me through a second book store. It was originally printed in the 1940's and is full of metaphysical accounts of animals in spirit land. True or not it will bring lassie tears and joyful read.
