Why dogs and cats don't live as long as people

[H5N1]

Email I just received:

"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."

[Shell Beau]

1. Aw, how sweet. I love it!

[ladjf]

5. Sweet , but erroneous. Life expectancy is tied in with metabolism.

Some reptiles live to over 100 years of age. Very slow heart rates.

[Shell Beau]

7. Well reptiles aren't quite as loving as dogs and cats.

Nothing wrong with reptiles, but at least to me, there is a huge difference in having those as pets.

[H5N1]

10. These answers are found in a different domain

[havocmom]

2. Out of the mouths of babes...

widom, truth and elegance.

[tridim]

3. Wow.. That's powerful

:cry:

[H5N1]

4. That made me a bit teary-eyed, as well

I love it because the boy did not invoke god in his
explanation. His humanism is infallable

[quisp]

6. wow, that's great...

That reminds me a conversation between my four-year-old daughter and her Aunt (my sister) recentely. They were watching tv and saw a commercial for March of the Penguins. She asked her aunt if she had seen it. She answered she hadn't and then asked what was it about?
"It's about love" said my daughter.
"It looked like it's about penguins." said my sister.
My daughter answered without batting an eye, "Oh yeah, penguin love!"

Thanks for the sweet story.

[hfojvt]

9. Penguin Lust???

Somebody call Fundamentally Oral Bill. And Portnoy.

[BikeWriter]

8. *Sniff!*