(CN) Pets are people, too

[Guest guest]

Pets are people, too

By Dwight Daniels (Shanghai Star)

Updated: 2004-05-17 09:05

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2004-05/17/content_331276.htm

 

We share this planet with a few other animals. Some we disdain, some we eat.

 

But some we have learned to love. That is to say, a few of us do. Others of

us haven't gotten past the view that animals aren't to be enjoyed as

companions on this earth.

 

In any case, as China develops, more and more of its people are beginning to

experience the world of pets in what Chinese call " pet-raising " , which is

really just having a pet in one's home.

 

In North America, tens of millions of people treat their pets like their

kids. Pet care has become a multi-billion US dollar market, with food, and

items such as shampoo and grooming, veterinary care, vaccinations, and toys,

and even vacations and schooling for critters.

 

I happen to be a dog person. I have two of them back in California. They're

way too large to be allowed to live in a Chinese urban setting. But they're

just like kids to me - and about the size of children - a 60-pound golden

retriever and a 70-pound Australian shepherd. I pay their every expense, and

get regular e-mail photos from them to see how they're doing.

 

Other folks I know are cat people. They're little friends hop in their laps

and purr like a pair of Mercury outboard engines, happy as clams before a

chowder party. And they're into mischief all the time, such as a weekend ago

when I " cat sat " for a pair. The kittens shredded ever piece of paper in my

friend's apartment. Cats will be cats.

 

This brings us to a question: Should one of them have gotten out and climbed

up a tall tree and have become too afraid to come down, what should have

been done to get the felonious feline back to earth safely?

 

In the US, the answer would've been simple: call the fire department. A big

fire engine manned by a team of firefighters would come out to the

neighbourhood and set up a ladder and rescue the animal. No kidding. All

that time and expense for a cat.

 

Now one might ask why on earth would a fire department waste such time on an

animal? What about fighting fires and saving human beings?

 

Of course a US fire department would immediately divert its firefighters and

equipment to a fire or other emergency if such an event were to take place.

Humans do take priority.

 

But what's the harm in rescuing an animal if nothing else is going on? In

fact, entire teams of people, with their own specialized equipment and

vehicles, travel all over the Western parts of the United States to rescue

animals when forest fires or other disasters erupt. They save horses and

cattle and other animals when the need occurs. Those who staff the teams are

entirely volunteers.

 

This is the way China will travel as the nation becomes more developed, with

more and more people becoming aware of the value that pets and other animals

can add to human lives.

 

That's especially true of the vast and growing greying population as

development inevitably breaks down the Chinese inter-generational family

structure. And China has a dramatically increasing population of seniors,

with more than 130 million, 10 per cent of its population, and a rate that

is expected to grow at 3.2 per cent over the next 50 years

 

Studies are finding that " empty-nesters " who have a pet enjoy better

physical and mental health than elders living alone.

 

Psychology Professor Zheng Richang, with Beijing Normal University, said a

study showed that 161 elders who had a dog or cat saw doctors less than the

558 who did not have animals in their home.

 

" Worldwide, scientists have also found that pet owners have a longer life

expectancy and are more likely to survive emergencies such as heart

attacks, " he told Xinhua News Agency.