LETTERS: OUR FAMILY PETS DESERVE PRAISE

To the editor:

Animal lovers everywhere will tell you that their pet is a member of their family. The pets feel love for their owners and other extended parts of that family. They worry for their owner's safety and are capable of courageous acts. To think otherwise of a pet could only mean one of two things, you don't have a pet or you don't care for it.

I'm not talking about cows, chickens or any working animal. I'm talking about the most faithful animal in the world, the dog. It's hard for a caring individual to look into those big brown eyes and not want to reach out to give an affirming pat on the head.

To enjoy the company of animals shows one's true character, that of compassion and caring.

My dogs, Dakota and Maisa, live in our house. They have their own door to come and go in the back yard as they please. We take time to go out front to greet the mailman on occasion, sometimes startling him, to keep up the good rapport they have. They greet everyone they know at the door with the enthusiasm of meeting a long-lost friend.

Children also run amok in my back yard right along with the dogs. When a small child is in the yard, the dogs are very protective. This I have found is not a good time for the meter man to come in unannounced. He wasn't hurt or anything, maybe a little shaken. We were just warned that there was a stranger near the child. Snakes are also a common occurrence in our yard since there is a creek running our property line. You can bet that snakes will not be allowed near a child either.

When all is calm at the end of the night, the dogs retire to their beds, and sometimes ours, following our lead. On the occasion that another animal, human or not, enters their hearing range, they will from time to time go out to alert the neighborhood. Someday they may be saying that a burglar is approaching not only my door, but maybe yours too. If you listen closely, you can tell by the tone of their bark what is going on around you.

These are but a few of the praises of pets. Their abilities are much more profound than words could ever convey. They do, regardless of what some may say, feel love for their caring owners. Caring owners also feel love for their pets.

CAROL POOLE

Jackson, Mo.