Pet RIP

A close friend of mine let me know that one of his cats died recently. The pet's last years were ones in which the feline struggled with a variety of ailments. It was a tough time for the cat and for the humans close to the animal. My friend put his heart and soul into caring for the creature, often at considerable personal expense. He'll grieve now for the loss of a pet for which he had considerable empathy. It's not known how the other animals in the household will react when they sense one of their own is no longer among them.

For all the digital wizardry in the world, gadgets just can't match animals when it comes to absorbing our attention. They have distinct lives, yet touch us in many ways. We also communicate our feelings to them, particularly through our senses. How the concept of a pet originated is unknown, but clearly the notion has been with us since antiquity. Pets also have the curious attribute of being universally accepted -- one of the few concepts without territorial boundary.

The latter observation demonstrates a key reason why a pet's mortality touches all of us. Even though the sentiment for the cat's demise is shared by many, my friend's feelings remain his own. However, he is not isolated by grief; his sadness links him to all of us who have cared for a pet through thick and thin, even when the animal passes from life to death.