Lisa and her husband Ron were very attached to their dog, an Irish Wolfhound called Belker. Nobody was more attached to this dog than little Shane, the couple’s son. It was a sad day for the family when they took him to the vets, only to find that the 10 year old dog had cancer. When the doctors examined Belker to find the cancer, they told the family that there was nothing they could do to help him, and that surgery wasn’t an option for cancer that was this far gone. They offered to euthanize Belker in their home. Ron and Lisa however thought that it would be good for Shane, aged 6 to be there as well so he could see the procedure. They thought that he might learn something from the experience, given how attached he was to Belker.
The time came yet Shane seemed very calm. He was stroking his dog in a way that almost suggested acceptance, and it was as if both him and the dog understood that this was goodbye. Belker slipped away peacefully within a matter of minutes, and Shane didn’t cry nor did he show any signs of distress. He knew it needed to happen and that he knew Belker was in a better place now. After Belker’s death, they all sat around thinking to themselves, why are animal’s lives so much shorter than ours. Shane sat quietly before saying “I know why…” Ron and Lisa looked at him with interest; before Shane went on to explain his theory. He said that “People are born so they can live a good life. They need to love everyone all the time and be nice”. “Dogs already know how to do that, so they don’t need to spend their entire lives learning how to do it. That’s why they don’t stay as long”.
