Protect my pet

Though it doesn't do any good to worry about things yet to come, it is hard to keep my mind from flitting to the possible calamities.

I have a neighbor who has six or seven dogs. Two are outside dogs and she has at least 5 miniature dachshunds. I often give the outdoor dogs dog biscuits when she takes them for a walk. Yesterday, as is now usual when neighbors meet, we were talking about the problems in Fukushima. She resignedly said that if worse comes to worse, her family will put up a tent and live with her dogs.

"What happened to all the animals up north? All those people were evacuated but what happened to their pets? To their livestock? I guess I don't really want to hear the answer to that..."

This is another problem that I hope I never have to face. If radiation spreads, then the smartest thing to do is get out of the area but what will happen to the animals? I think all pet owners and livestock farmers are worried about this. There would be no one to take care of them... What do you do? Lock them up to die of starvation? Let them go to fare for themselves? Take as many as you can along with you and try to keep them in a car? (if you have a car). Tetsu and I had a brief conversation about this and I ended up in tears.

"I'm not leaving the animals if it comes to that."

Well, the people in Fukushima have had no choice. The Defense Force is evacuating people. But still some of the farmers are going back into dangerous radiation zones hoping to care for their livestock.

Pet owners probably understand the dilemma. Non-pet owners may think this a small worry. For all the headaches that my animals give me, they are part of my family. I don't think I could leave them any more than someone could leave their child to fare for itself. It is just the way I think.

Tetsu listens to me scold the cats, or watches me cuddling one of them and he says it sure is a good thing that we have all these animals to keep our minds off of other things. And he says he doesn't worry about me being alone everyday when he knows I'm talking to cats.

This morning when Tetsu left for work he said,

"Tanya, you look worried when you watch the TV. You look happy when you are talking to the cats. Just enjoy the animals today."

"Thy lovingkindness, O Lord, extends to the heavens.
Thy faithfulness reaches to the skies.
Thy righteousness is like the mountains of God,
Thy judgments are like a great deep.
O Lord, Thou preservest man and beast."

Psalm 36:5~6