Cats are not often presented with the opportunity to protect their caregiver from a physical threat. The desire and ability to protect should not be the defining criteria for an animal's love.

Ennis is 19YO. We have been together for all but six weeks of his 19 years. Loving me doesn't mean that he is there to protect me. Please. He's a 14 pound, fragile, elderly cat. How is he going to do that?

Ennis gives me affection when I care for him, be it SubQ fluids, his oral medication, or his insulin. He knows that I am caring for him, and he gives me love back at those times. Love by purring, holding my hand, and looking into my face. I practice some animal communication, and Ennis and I communicate lovingly with images. During the night, he will come to me, asking me for petting, his way of showing me that I am his one and only person.

Owen will fight a stick for you. My Ennis shows me his soul.

Venita

I think the writer of this article has problems with understanding love. He even pointed out that his horse upon being startled and knocking him to the ground showed his sorrow? and compassion by laying is nose upon him (what did he expect the horse to to call 911 with his hoove????) He goes on to say that his cats just treat him as a slave. Well of course that is a bit typical for a cat but make no mistake that they love their owners exclusively above any stranger that would "still" serve them, I have found cats to e very affection but always more so with their owners. As for dogs there is no possible way even the author can deny the love of dogs.



My German Shepherd loved me beyond what I can even describe. He would have easily given his life tor me. Different Animals have different capabilities and ways of showing love, some can protect you and some cannot but either way they love you. You can not expect the love of a different species to be the same as human love for they are not human none the less their love may be even greater than that of humans. Would you give your life for your pets?? I know my German Shepherd would have given his life for mine.

My German Shepherd dog for instance when he was a pup would stand behind me for protection because when he was little he viewed me as his protector. Naturaly was the proper way for a young animal to feel. However as he got older and came into his own security he began to discover his abilities and sheer streng. He grew up to know his power and had no fear. On several occasions this beautiful dog protected me and he even had the calibration and the compassion to do so in a way so as to not necessarily hurt the offender unless needed.. He protected with fierce confidence and compassion combined.

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This Dog his name was Drakkar, showed this several times throughout the years he was alive. On one occasion my ex was not treating me well and tried to put his hands on me. Out of no where without a sound (no bark , no growl, no fear) he grabbed my 6 ft 230 lb man BY THE THROAT ..He put his teeth around this jerks trachea and carotid arteries and just held him there. HE DID NOT bite down . He just looked at ME like WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO DO??? I CAN TAKE HIM OUT IF YOU LIKE?? My Ex was frozen with fear as I told my Dog it's okay let him go. He had done the same thing with aggressive animals always pinning them but looking to me for instruction. Now you tell me that's not love. The writer of this article just isn't paying attention or taking into consideration what the pet is capable of ...Yes MY Dog Drakkar was very capable as he was a Strong fearless very well balanced , agile, clearheaded, deliberate , confident and non violent dog. He was extremely smart. I was very fortunate to be blessed with his presence in this life.. Not all pets have that capability but they are still loyal and love their owners and one can see (if paying attention) a range of emotion from happy, concerned, sad, protective, compassion, hurt, humility, pride, anger, excitement, loneliness this list goes on and on.



Perhaps the writer of this article should have a German Shepherd rather than a horse or cats as the Shepherds temperament is better suited to unveil the type of love the writer considers to be real to him. Not only did my Shepherd love and protect me, he also did the same with my family, my Friend's, our other pets, babies etc... He was magnificent. I currently own two dogs now. They are sweet wonderful pets and I have no doubt they love me but they simply don't have the same capabilities that my Shepherd had. I have no doubt they would if they could. I accept their love on their terms. "not mine" I and I don't expect it to be the same as human love nor would I want it to be. Love in different forms can be and is just as powerfull and the writer needs to lean more about love before he judges his pets..
Jodi Ann

Oh and by the way I apologize I didn't read the name of the author and hept calling her a him LOL. I mean no offense in my response only to share my thoughts. When a re-read it it seemed a bit condescending which I definatley did not indend. I do wish to convey my thoughts on love , life , animals ect... and I do hope you realize my intention was simply to point out love the way that I see it and not trying to argue with you.

First of all, it tickles me that someone else has a critter named Owen. What a great critter name!

I like to think my critters love me, but I agree that I'm probably "staff". They like a warm lap, a good brushing, head scratches and Fancy Feast.

I believe they're grateful, in their kitty way, for medical attention when it makes them feel better. I believe they're grateful when they've been rescued from the streets and a life foraging for dinner.

The Thundering Herd meets me at the door when I come home from work and there's a migration from room to room as I move around.

However, I also believe their loyalties would shift pretty quickly if I quit performing my staff duties and someone else stepped in.

My brother-in-laws cat actually did step in between a strange dog and his human, back arched, hissing to the fullest and completely prepared to protect his human from any danger.

I have had several instances in which one of my horses has put his own safety in jeapordy to protect me. All of my horses have put themselves between me and another bullying horse in the field. One horse came after a large menacing dog with his teeth bared (the horse, not the dog). I was riding the same horse on an unfamiliar trail. We went into what I thought would be a muddy section and instead we sank up past my stirrups. We could not move. Instead of thrashing wildly to get out, my horse stood absolutely still as I dismounted, sank up to my knees, got my boots stuck in the muck, had my husband pull me up out of my boots. It was a protracted, messy, difficult maneuver. Only when I was safely out of the way did my horse lunge out of the mire.

My husband was very impressed as he knew I would have been hurt had my horse not been so careful.

There are many other instances with other horses that I could list. It is true that not ALL of my horses behaved like this and would fit your criteria of "loving me." But several over the years have.

My horse protected me and I have seen others try to avoid hurting their owners or other people when something has frightened them or take a licking from another horse as to running over a human when they really just want to get away. I have a cat that is like a tattle tail and lets me know there is something or someone outside that shouldn't be before the dogs do (unless they are outside) and he also tells me when Cheddar has escaped! lol My cat Checkers (RIP) use to rub on me and lick my tears away in a very comforting way when I would be upset. My German Shepherd Bagheera (RIP) was the same way...she wouldn't leave me when she knew I was upset. I've seen cats protect their persons or territory from someone who didn't belong or posed a threat. Love comes in all shapes and sizes and we all know there are people out there that love us too but no matter how much they do...they may not put themselves in danger to protect us. Every person and animal reacts differently to show their love. I'm pretty sure that most of my pets actually do/did love me.

I too have had one of my horses put my safety first in a similar situation. I was riding alone on a trail in the winter. the trail was getting a little narrower along a deep creek bed. the ground gave from under us and my horses back legs had nothing to grip since there was now a mud slide under her back feet. she froze and hung on with her front feet and I was able to get off and to solid ground. when she saw me she looked at me and bent her front feet and went head first down the revine, 50 to 75+ feet and landed upside down on a bunch of concrete blocks with rebar poking out. one bar gored the saddle seat and came out under the horn. That would have been me if she did not let me off first. I was safe and she ended up with a lot of stiches but was ok too. i don't know if that is love but I definently think she put my safety first. I had this horse till the day she passed away and her son treated me the same way till the day he passed away. I miss them both.

If you're going to define love primarily by a being's willingness to put itself in harm's way to protect another then you would have to say that most children don't love their parents because most young children would't stand in front of a parent to protect him/her from some scary danger. I think this is a very narrow definition of love. I think you have to take into consideration the biology of the creature you're taking about - whether human or animal. Animal mothers DO often stand in front of mortal danger to protect their children just as human parents do. I think this is insitinctive in most species, humans included. Animal babies, just like human youngsters, don't generally do this because it isn't instinctive for them. It would actually be foolhardy since they are more likely to get killed than the parent. I don't think this is necessarily a definitive test of whether someone loves or not. I think you also have to look at whether an animal likes to spend time with you and is happy around you. My cats sometime groom me. When I'm ill in bed with a migraine, they come and lie next to me as if they sense I'm not feeling well and just want to keep me company. To me - that's love and it's love both in animals AND humans. If you think about it - that's what we define as love in humans too. A human loves you when that human likes to spend time with you and seems concerned about your well-being and seems unhappy when separated from you. As humans we give gifts to one another to show our love. Animals will do that in their own way. Most cats who live indoors can't "shop" for gifts but outside cats sometimes bring their owners lizards and mice and other things they've captured. Animals like dogs, for whom territoriality is part of their biology, will sometimes show love by being protective of their owners. I think generally love is a "many-splendored" thing and one of those things that you "know" when you see and feel it. Animals can DEFINITELY love though - we do so and what most people forget is that we ARE animals ;-)

Great response I totally agree.

Yes, They can, Lived on a Farm, most of my Life, Our Vet. He could not care for any of my Gang unless I was there......They had trust in me only....If anyone spoke to me. In a unkind voice, this means Mom, Dad or my Brothers......Here they came a running-Horses-Cattle-Goats-Pigs-Dogs, I had to come them down. As I look back, love and respect is the answer. I am part Native American. This what my Grandmother said; I
have a Gife, few have,I think, this is not true, When Love is given, it will return. That goes for Hate and just acting hatefull, to any-one. Cast you Bread on the waters, good or bad it will return.

I think my three cats view me as more than their good and faithful servant, though I am certainly that. They love me differently - for one, I am definitely the Beloved Bringer of Noms first and foremost - but I feel the love.

In the recent best seller HOMER'S ODYSSEY, the author writes that her blind cat, Homer, ran off an intruder who broke into her apartment. She is convinced that Homer saved her from injury or worse. Now you could ask, was Homer defending her or himself. I know what the author thinks.

pets operate on instinct.. we operate on love..but that does not change the fact that we have a relationship with our pets.

If pets operate on instinct, then so do we. We too, are animals. It never ceases to amaze me how we rationalize human behavior that -- when you strip away all the rationalizations -- is clearly instinctual. If we are capable of this thing we called "love" then so are non-human animals, for we too are animals. All the capacities we claimed for only ourselves, one by one are being scientifically proven to be possessed by non-humans: Empathy, the capacity to play, and more. Remember that once it was commonly held belief (and still is in some cultures) that human females were incapable of types of higher thought, emotional self control, and many other abilities and characteristics reserved only for men. The tendency to cast aside any claims to emotional capacity on the part of animals I believe comes from the same place as does/did those beliefs about women: chauvanism.

I think the writer of this article has problems with understanding love. She even pointed out that her horse upon being startled and knocking her to the ground showed his sorrow? and compassion by laying is nose upon her (what did she expect the horse to to call 911 with his hoove????) She goes on to say that her cats just treat her as a slave (to paraphrase). Well of course that is a bit typical for a cat but make no mistake that they love their owners exclusively above any stranger that would "still" serve them, I have found cats to be very affection but always more so with their owners. As for dogs there is no possible way even the author can deny the love of dogs.



My German Shepherd loved me beyond what I can even describe. He would have easily given his life tor me. Different Animals have different capabilities and ways of showing love, some can protect you and some cannot but either way they love you. You can not expect the love of a different species to be the same as human love for they are not human, none the less ,their love may be even greater than that of humans. Would you give your life for your pets?? I know my German Shepherd would have given his life for mine.

My German Shepherd dog for instance when he was a puppy would stand behind me for protection because when he was little he viewed me as his protector. Naturally, this was the proper way for a young animal to feel. However as he got older and came into his own security he began to discover his abilities and sheer strength He grew up to know his power and had no fear. On several occasions this beautiful dog protected me and he even had the calibration and the compassion to do so, in a way so as to not necessarily hurt the offender, unless needed.. He protected with fierce confidence and compassion combined.

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This Dog... his name was Drakkar, showed this several times throughout the years he was alive. On one occasion my ex was not treating me well and tried to put his hands on me. Out of no where without a sound (no bark , no growl, no fear) he grabbed my 6 ft 230 lb man BY THE THROAT ..He put his teeth around this jerks trachea and carotid arteries and just held him there. HE DID NOT bite down . He just looked at ME like WHAT WOULD YOU LIKE ME TO DO??? I CAN TAKE HIM OUT IF YOU LIKE?? My Ex was frozen with fear as I told my Dog it's okay let him go. This is JUST ONE EXAMPLE . He had done the same thing with aggressive animals always pinning them but looking to me for instruction. Now you tell me that's not love. Additionally this dog looked at me with love, admiration, respect, and a willingness to please that i have never wittnessed in any human. He knew if i was hurt or not feeling well and he offered comfort by licking my tears or laying his head on me and so many countless ways. The writer of this article just isn't paying attention or taking into consideration what the pet is capable of ...Yes MY Dog Drakkar was very capable as he was a strong, fearless, very well balanced , agile, clearheaded, deliberate , confident and non violent dog. He was extremely smart. I was very fortunate to be blessed with his presence in this life.. Not all pets have that capability but they are still loyal and love their owners and one can see (if paying attention) a range of emotion from happy, concerned, sad, protective, compassion, hurt, humility, pride, anger, excitement, loneliness this list goes on and on.



Perhaps the writer of this article should have a German Shepherd rather than a horse or cats as the Shepherds temperament is better suited to unveil the type of love the writer considers to be real to her. Not only did my Shepherd love and protect me, he also did the same with my family, my Friend's, our other pets, babies etc... He was magnificent. I currently own two dogs now. They are sweet wonderful pets and I have no doubt they love me but they simply don't have the same capabilities that my Shepherd had. I have no doubt they would if they could. I accept their love on their terms. "not mine" I and I don't expect it to be the same as human love nor would I want it to be. Love in different forms can be and is just as powerful and the writer needs to lean more about love before she judges her pets..
It really perplexes me that the author is a vet and doesn't understand the simple pricinples of love. Despite all of this, the more important question is "Do we love our pets?" not "do our pets love us". Giving love away is far more important than taking love and is essentially what love is all about.,

I think that 'love' is too nebulous a term to describe what animals feel for us .. though if we can feel love for them, as many of us do, why would we find it hard to believe that they feel love for us?

What do you call it when a dog pines to starvation when his owner dies or abandons him? Does anyone deny that this does happen?

It's certainly some kind of bond - in some cases perhaps just a bond of dependency, but I don't think that accounts for dogs who apparently just quit living when their owner disappears, nor for animals who groom us or other species of pets. It's true we rarely see this depth of reaction in other animals, but I'd venture to say that my brother's horses love him, though yours may not love you.

I have had several dogs who groomed me, and cats that do the same. It's true that they groom each other (we had a cat that would groom *some* of our dogs: did she love them, or was she just OCD about grooming .. and if so, why some and not others?

Until we can read their minds - and since our understanding of each other is pretty limited, I don't think we should make too many assumptions about what we 'know' about what they are thinking - we should accept what appears to be affection and love from them as such until we have reason to know otherwise.

If we reject the idea, I think we need to take a hard look at what we really feel for and think about animals.

I've had a cat attack a dog that had come into our yard, and come after me when I was a small 7 year old. The cat ripped the under side of the dog to shreds. My parents were sued but the dog owner lost due to leash laws in our town. I'd call that LOVE, the cat wasn't the one being attacked I was, and he came to my aid. He always slept in my bed and was my buddy until he passed at 16 years of age. My 2 now kitties love me also--they will come up to me and groom me, lay across my lap just to hang out together. Always have to keep me in sight.

Dr. Coates,
While I admire the fact that you are "honest", I find this article very troubling. This is reminiscent of Dr. Lee's opinion that euthanasia becomes "routine" to some vets, which cheapens and trivializes the life of the one being euthanized, and all life, for that matter.
When I am ill, our cats invariably stay on the bed with me, watching over me, until I feel well again.
One cat, now deceased, stayed on the bed, only getting down to eat or use her litter box, for two solid weeks when I had compression fractures from osteoporosis.
When my husband is ill, our cats do the same thing. I have seen cats on Animal Planet programs that awakened families and saved them from impending doom when a fire broke out.
Our dog would actually come to me and put her head on my shoulder as I cried over my father's condition.
It is extremely puzzlng and saddening to me that a veterinarian would write a column like this. The only possible reason that I can think that you would do that is to try to take the wind out of the sails or to denigrate the TX decision on pets as family. However, if you REALLY feel that our pets, including horses and cats, are incapable of love,then I truly think that you have chosen the wrong profession. I pity your clients, your patients, and especially your pets, as one who feels about pets as you do would NEVER put them "first" in a case of danger, or even in day to day life. You have just proven that you are indeed, a pet "owner" and not a pet "parent." Very sad.

I feel the same way. It is definatley perplexing that she could be a vet and not be aware of simple principles of love. See mu post about my German Shepherd.

As I read this article I was reminded of a dog owned by a man named Lao Pan. I don't know if villagers have caught the dog yet but they feed him and built a kennel as he will not leave the grave of his owner. For me that is love and loyalty at it's finest.

I would be very sad to know that a person or an animal that I have loved during my lifetime couldn't get over my death and enjoy life and love again.

I had my beloved Toonces for 17 years. When he was about 10 years old, my mother adopted a maltese from the shelter. He could be snappy, especially when you tried to groom him. My mother visited frequently and Toonces showed no interest in him. He generally just jumped on top of the entertainment center and stayed there when they were around. We often just left them alone and went to lunch and all seemed well.

One day my mother and I were grooming him on the couch. He snapped at me. Toonces flew across the room and went right for the dogs throat. I had to throw a blanket over his head to avoid serious injury to the dog. Toonces looked at me like I was terribly ungrateful.

Anyway the point of that story is he put himself in danger for me. This is the same type of behavior you would see in a protective dog. There are many stories of cats doing things like this.

He mourned for me all day when I was at work. I would come home and find him crying, and he was so happy when I hoisted him up in my arms.

If I was upset about anything, and crying, Toonces would come over and headbutt me repeatedly and purr and flop on me -- he just wouldn't let me cry. That isn't putting himself in danger for me, but it is setting aside whatever his own priorities were in that moment to cheer me up. That is empathy. Pretty close to love in my book. Not like he did that with anyone else.

I think he loved me. I feel it and know it.

We were so very very close.

At least one of my cats now loves me. She does this affectionate lean thing and I know how to see love in someone's eyes, even if it's a cat. She "hugs" me just out of her own burst of emotion. She is an unusually smart cat and she is the only one of my current four that does this.

Yes, I think some do feel genuine love and loyalty. I don't know why anyone would think otherwise.

They definitely -- all -- know when I am sick and are especially attentive.

I've always said that love is not shown in what someone says but in what they do. They have no words, only actions. Judging by their actions, I would say yes, they do.

Of course your pets loved you. This author just doen't understand love. It's quite perplexing that she is a vet and can't understant that our pets show their love differently than humans and her definition of love is a bit scewed. Most of us wouldn't want our furry babys to put themselves in danger. We are there to provide and protect them and I don't care what anyone thinks they Love us.

Re: "I've always said that love is not shown in what someone says but in what they do."

Humans are suckers for what people say. There are probably many people in your life who have never put themselves in danger for you, and have never had to prove their love to you by doing that: You just believe they love you because they've said so. Make a list of the people who you believe love you. Then cross off every single name of every single person who has never risked his or her physical wellbeing and safety for you. Who's left?

Words are a lot of noise. More often than not, they obscure, rather than speak, the truth. Loving behavior, not declarations of emotion, is what can be trusted.

Without words, the love we have with our pets is much more pure. There is nothing to obfuscate its presence or absence. You would not put that same "bar" of placing yourself in danger to prove love on people. Why would you expect that of a horse? They are prey animals, aren't they? You expect the "love" to overcome every instinct they have to flee danger?

It's like expecting a rabbit to stand between you and danger.

The tendency of dogs to behave like this more than cats is, no doubt, due to their wiring for pack behavior, not "love" - its presence or absence. They are wired to behave like this. I don't think much can be imputed.

Our animals, like a child, surely have a sense of their own comparative vulnerability. I would not ask a child to prove his love by fighting off a mugger. I would expect his every instinct to tell him to flee.

A fireman will come stand between you and danger, so will a perfect stranger. That doesn't mean they love you.

1a (1) : strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties (2) : attraction based on sexual desire : affection and tenderness felt by lovers (3) : affection based on admiration, benevolence, or common interests b : an assurance of affection
2: warm attachment, enthusiasm, or devotion
3a : the object of attachment, devotion, or admiration b (1) : a beloved person : darling —often used as a term of endearment (2) British —used as an informal term of address
4a : unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another: as (1) : the fatherly concern of God for humankind (2) : brotherly concern for others b : a person's adoration of God
5: a god or personification of love

Dr. Coates, as you can see by the above definitions, our pets' behavior cetainly falls under the category and definition of love.
When a cat follows you from one room to another, just to be near you...is that love? When a dog is elated to see you and greets you at the door (as do our cats), is that love? When a cat or dog sulks when reprimanded, knowing that they have displeased you, is that love?
I truly feel sorry for you that you are in a profession in which you have the ability to do so much good, yet do not see many of your patients as being capable of love. That is the saddest commentary on the future of veterinary medicine today.

Exactly! It truly perplexes me that this woman is a vet.
How blind can one be. Maybe she has just studied too much medicine and missed the point,, read my post about my shepherd , Much of what he showed as love was not just instince and humans also act on insticnt. True love is shown among all different species and even from two different non human species. I hope the posts on here wake this Vet up.

I totally agree... I hope never to encounter this vet for my own kitties. HORRIBLE!

Stefanio, this cuts to the heart of the matter. Actions speak louder than words. Although our animal companions are incapable of "speaking" to us, their love is no less pure, and as you said, actually more so because , unlike humans, they can not "BS" you.
When they love you, they do not care how old you are, your social status, your intellect...nothing matters to them but the fact that they love you, and you show them that love in return.
Your post cut right to the heart of the matter, something which Dr. Coates has obviously never contemplated in her very specist little "world" in which she resides. I hope to God that she is not representative of the feelings (or lack thereof) of most veterinarians.


EXCERPT FROM STEFANIO'S VERY ELOQUENT POST
I've always said that love is not shown in what someone says but in what they do."

Humans are suckers for what people say. There are probably many people in your life who have never put themselves in danger for you, and have never had to prove their love to you by doing that: You just believe they love you because they've said so. Make a list of the people who you believe love you. Then cross off every single name of every single person who has never risked his or her physical wellbeing and safety for you. Who's left?

Words are a lot of noise. More often than not, they obscure, rather than speak, the truth. Loving behavior, not declarations of emotion, is what can be trusted.

Without words, the love we have with our pets is much more pure.

What an interesting topic, one I have thought much of. Love is reciprocal. I don't think most of us would be so willing to spend time, energy and money on the care of our pets if we didn't believe they loved us. They love us in the way that they do, and cats and dogs are different. I don't know as much about horses although I like them. If I wanted an animal for protection I would have a shepherd, a doberman, an akita, etc. My cats seem to look to me for protection, which I am happy to provide. When I take my cat to the vet he stands on the examination table and presses his face against me, a behavior he does not otherwise exhibit. He is always alert to any sort of disturbance outside. Once I was working in the yard, with a cat hanging out with me. The neighbor's beagle, a most gentle creature, came into the yard. The cat hid behind me, but would periodically dart out and hiss at the beagle, then go behind me again and look up at me. My cats have always slept with me, groomed me, and stayed in bed with me when I was not well.

Dr. Coates, cats require generally that you work at a relationship and build it over time, unlike dogs, who as pack animals come to this more naturally. Please understand this and be open.

Another post here suggested that the animal would leave if its needs were not being met. Look at human relationships. Your spouse or partner will also quite likely make other arrangements if his/her needs are not being met. Often enough they will do this regardless. If I am letting a little cynicism show through, I have been there and seen enough. I don't think this means that human love is non-existent or worthless. Where does love come from then, and what is it? Animals have feelings and personalities, and they never lie or BS you. There are certain areas of the brain which we call association cortex, in prefrontal, temporal and occipital areas. They are highly developed in the "companion animals", cats, dogs and horses, but a bit less so in horses. They are more developed in primates (not such good pets) and much more so in humans (not pets at all). Perhaps the capacity for love lies in these areas. I don't think that this capacity arose de novo in humans. Similarly, it is widely believed that language arose only in humans, but cats and dogs use vocalizations to communicate with us. While my cat does not likely have what Chomsky would call an innate grammatical competence, he has vocalizations that are expressive and tied to a particular situation, and I think we understand each other. I could be just projecting but I don't think so.

I continue to be amazed at our capacity to form these relationships with different species, as well as theirs with us.

It is also interesting that these relationships are (nearly always) unambiguously non-sexual. Not that I don't love sex, but there is so much baggage associated with it. I believe that not only do we teach animals, but there is much that they teach us, about who we are and where we came from, if we are willing to learn.

I have to agree with you.

I do feel like am a cherish staff member for my adorable feline.

I also totally agree with you about Dogs too. I have too many example over a long life of being blessed to be the person of many Dogs. All the times they have protected one of us, my child, myself, etc, to ever doubt their ability to love us. I laughed myself silly reading about your sweet pooch, because I have also had similar experiences and they do actually look embarrassed too.

I lost my last "pack member" and the dearest to me, in Oct of 2010. I have not had the courage to look for another, I think that's why I don't mind being staff for my "Baby" for the time being.

I would argue that protection from a stick (or whatever) is not "love" it's an instinctive protection of the pack from a threat.
If you want to accept that as love then one of my cats (Vandal) woke me up years ago when the rug was smoldering. I think he may have saved me.

My cat Ajax has learned to recognize my motorcycle sound and my wife has seen him run through the house to greet me when I come home. Is that love? A dog owner would say yes.

Here's what I know in my heart. When I sit on the couch watching the TV, he sits next to me, he reaches his paw out to touch me and stay connected to me. He meows at me to come sit with him. I don't know if this is love in a human sense because he is not human, but it is the closest thing that another species is probably able to give. He is very connected to me and bonded to me. I choose to think of that as love.

I am glad to have read this if for nothing else, than I hope never to need your advice. Its obvious to me that you may know about a cat's diseases and organs but you have no idea how they "are". Shame on you!

How many of us have witnessed the love that our pets give us on a daily basis in so many ways. Non verbal communication in humans is often thought by experts to be more reliable than words. So, why is Dr. Coates so blind that she does not even consider that in our pets?.

There was recently a factoid given on Animal Planet that cats have double the amount of neurons in the brain as dogs. While I will certainly not get into a debate about which is the more intelligent species, canine or feline,(and it doesn't matter, really) it is yet another example that there is much about the workings of the mind , be it canine, feline, or human, that is not entirely understood.



One of our cats actually comes up by me (they both sleep with us) and if I have my arm extended with open palm, she will place her paw in the palm of my hand and leave it there. In essence, she is "holding my hand" as a child would do to express love. When our beloved dog was alive, she got along famously with her three feline "sisters", was never crated, and indeed, was protective of them. Yet, when she was outdoors, if she saw a cat roaming in the neighborhood, she would want to give chase. She was intelligent enough to differentiate the fact that her sisters were her "family", and not "prey". She was nothing short of loving and tolerant to each of her sisters, and even though one of them would swat at her and hiss, she never responded in kind. If that is not love, I do not know what would qualify in Dr. Coates' limited definition.



So many good points and examples of love have been given in the numerous responses to this article. It is clear that those of us who love our pets and have the wisdom to discern that they love us have all been appalled by the premise of this article written by Dr. Coates.

The fact that a vet could even espouse the idea that a pet is incapable of love, is repugnant and unfathomable to those of us who consider our pets as family.

As Four Maine Kitties has so succinctly put it, while Ms. Coates may have the title of "Dr. " in front of her name, she knows little of the soul/personality of animals, which is the essence of their being. Given her erroneous assumptions about cats, dogs and horses, she would be better suited as an auto mechanic. At least then, there would be no doubt that her assumptions would be true, as a car can not love you back.



"If having a soul means being able to feel love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals are better off than a lot of humans" ~ James Herriot

Dr. Coates Is it possible that the stress of veterinary practice has turned you into a grown up? I recommend that you read the Little Prince to your daughter. I include some applicable quotations.
“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”


Grown-ups never understand anything by themselves, and it is tiresome for children to be always and forever explaining things to them.

I have lived a great deal among grown-ups. I have seen them intimately, close at hand. And that hasn’t much improved my opinion of them.

“To me, you are still nothing more than a little boy who is just like a hundred thousand other little boys. And I have no need of you. And you, on your part, have no need of me. To you, I am nothing more than a fox like a hundred thousand other foxes. But if you tame me, then we shall need each other. To me, you will be unique in all the world. To you, I shall be unique in all the world…”

“If you tame me, it will be as if the sun came to shine on my life.”



“You have hair like the color of gold. Think how wonderful that will be when you have tamed me! The grain, which is also golden, will bring me back the thought of you. And I shall love to listen to the wind in the wheat…”


You are responsible for who you tame!

If only all pet owners felt responsible for who they tame. Veterinary practice would be much less stressful.

Thank you, Dr. Ken, for reminding me of this book, which I read in college when studying French, and was not nearly as able to understand the depth of as fully as now. I totally agree.

Dr. Ken, the Little Prince is truly a work that captures the essence of understanding what love and meaning are. Thank you for quoting it. The more I know about you, the more I think I need to be reading YOUR blog. "What is essential is invisible to the eye . . . it is only with the heart that one can see rightly."

I read from The Little Prince at my beloved Toonces funeral. I was fortunate to be able to lay him to rest in a respectful, appropriate way. I read the story of the Fox and the Little Prince, which is my favorite part of the book. Like the fields of wheat, there are so many things that bring the thought of him to me, I have to find comfort in that.

He tamed me, I tamed him. We tamed each other. We loved each other.

I find it hard to believe that someone would read this blog and then question the Veterinary ability of Dr. Coates. I for one enjoy her blog and I believe that she would be a vet that I would chosse to take care of my family.

Dr Coates, keep up the good work and thank you for taking your time to blog for pet woners out here.

Jim, I know nothing about her "ability' as a vet, as I have never taken one of my pets to her. However, I do know that she has opined that there are some pets that are incapable of love. Any vet worth her salt, or any animal lover worth her salt, for that matter, knows that is blatantly false. Just because she is a vet does not mean that she has taken notice of the behaviors that show beyond the shadow of a doubt that cats indeed, do love. I can not speak to the ability of a horse to love, as I have never had or been around a horse for any length of time. But there are some horse owners who have disagreed with Dr. Coates. Perhaps she is projecting her own inability to love her pets on them, who knows. I only know that for any vet to espouse such an erroneous assumption about pets is very telling. If she doesn't think that a cat is capable of love, I would not want her anywhere near my cat as those are the type of people who can not possibly be as compassionate as someone who knows and values the fact that these animals are indeed capable of love. While I am very appreciative of the MEDICAL information shared by Dr. Coates in her blogs, she has definitely revealed , albeit inadvertently, much about herself and her feelings towards the patients that she treats on a daily basis. I reiterate...she would be better off as an auto mechanic, as cars do not need compassion nor can they feel or give love.

I absolutely believe that animals (even cats!) can love. I agree with the posters above who stated that demonstrating love has to be understood in the context of the abilities and limitations of the one in question, whether that one is an animal or a child or anyone else.

I thought this short article on "Do our Pets Really Love Us?" was nice:

http://www.petplace.com/dogs/do-our-pets-really-love-us/page1.aspx?utm_source=catcrazynews001et&utm_medium=email&utm_content=petplace_article&utm_campaign=dailynewsletter

So my personal vote, even regarding our independent feline species, is *YES*!

At first I was shocked at Dr. Coates' posting. And then I read the storm of comments, outraged by this vets opinion. I took a moment to reread the posting and reflect. First, it appears Dr. Coates, perhaps like many pet owners, may not spend as much time talking to their pets, nurturing them as "children" like many of us readers. I could be wrong. But that is my perception. Furthermore, her definition of love is quite different from mine and many commenters. Therein lies the difference. Her definition was about protecting the owner. If that is her definition of love then I can not fault her. My definition is quite different. But even if my definition was the same as Dr. Coates' I would have to say my cat Jean Pierre does love me unequivocally as he did try to protect me from another cat that was scratching me up badly (actually Johnny Walker was choking on a collar and bleeding and in trying to remove the collar he freaked out even more and had all arms, paws lashing out with stiletto nails). He was so confused. My arms were scratched and dripping bloody and Jean Pierre came running to protect me.

Also, there is the famous book about Homer the black BLIND cat that saved his owner from attacker.

But my six cats do love me. Little Geisha, recently was ill, blood in her urine. She was not as affectionate before, but after spending extra quality time with her and nurturing and caring for her, she now sleeps with me every night versus sometimes, her head nestled in the crook between my arm and bosom. She licks my face like a dog in the middle of the night like a mother kissing her child on forehead. She purrs, and even caresses my face with her tiny paw. I always wonder at this act if I'm dreaming and realizing that this is not a fictional Disney cartoon movie, tears of joy roll down my face, I don't want to sleep and savor this show of affection of 100% LOVE. Yes this is love.
Yes pets can absolutely love. In their own way.
www.riverfrontcats.com

Yes, true: Dr. Coates believes that protection is the only way you can tell someone loves you. But again, if you went through your list of humans and struck off every name of anyone who has not placed his or her physical welfare in immediate danger to protect yours, you'd be left with a pretty short, sad list - unless you are in the infantry on the front lines or working as a fire fighter or cop. In which case, you'd have to conclude that your fellow service members love you much more than your own parents, spouse or children since they have much more opportunity to directly place their physical safety in jeopardy to protect yours. I submit that the "proof of love" theory doesn't really hold up if you analyze it a bit more.

IMHO though.

I feel that any animal that feels sad and expresses these emotions by crying or howling and the animal who gets excited to see somebody and runs all around in circles, jumping and wagging, any animal who feels and expresses fear, jealousy and all the other emotions, they must also feel love.

Sheesh, some of these comments...

Your stick story reminds me of one about my 20 lb Scottie or Cairn mix Lola. We live in a two-story townhome and once while we were both downstairs, there was an unexpected loud noise upstairs. (Turned out to be the ceiling-mounted vent cover on the HVAC intake coming loose and swinging on its hinges.) Lola and I stared wide-eyed at each other for a few seconds, and then I swear I saw the realization hit her: "Oh my God. I'm the guard dog." She actually started to creep very stealthily up the stairs in order to investigate the noise before I bypassed her and relieved her of this perilous task. :)

I like the comments that mentioned instincts of animals, which includes humans. We have to acknowledge that Disney and other animal related movies have shaped many if not most of us in how we feel about animals. In many of these movies animals are shown to act and think like humans. Do young human children really love their parents? What about if they were adopted? Is it love if one individual totally depends on another and has no choice in the matter of who their parents are? I believe love is a very individual feeling and there is no point to argue wether or not animals love us. What does it matter anyway? We can love our animals unconditionally, it doesn't matter if they love us back or whatever their feelings towards us are, their feelings are just as individual as ours. I don't need to know if my animals love me, I know I love them and I appreciate the relationships I have with each of them. I also appreciate and respect the bonds and friendships they have with each other. Anybody who pays attention to animals can see how some individuals just form special bonds that go beyond survival of the individual or the species. Those bonds can develop between individuals within a species and sometimes outside their species.
And Dr. Coates, great subject, you don't deserve any personal attacks for it.

Excellent post.....

agree!

http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/151483/canine-hero-kabang-gains-instant-celebrity

http://www.anorak.co.uk/313166/strange-but-true/kabang-the-hero-dog-saves-childrens-lives-loses-face.html/

http://weirdworldnews.org/2012/02/25/update-kabang-the-hero-dog-gets-gifts-and-sympathy/

agree!

I believe that animals love their human companions more honestly, unconditionally, loyally and sweetly than any human ever could or would. They do not judge or accuse or lie or cheat or deliberately cause hurt or pain. People do that. Sure they get angry, bored, tired, their feelings get hurt, they can be spiteful and retaliatory (I have seen this..., but they are very rerely mean, cruel or nasty unless there is a human-factor involved that has taught them to be so. Multiple cats will fight and argue just like human siblings. Dogs and cats are not enemies and will cuddle together despite their obvious difference. A fat cat will be liked by a svelt cat. An ugly dog will be accepted by a handsome mutt. A fat or ugly or incpacitated person will not be met with stares or jeers or distaste from an animal. Animals are far more "human" than people and, therefore, they do love - us and each other - deeply, unconditionally and truly. Man's superiority complex causes him to believe that animals are lower on life's scale than he. How self-indulgent and egotistical! They're things an animal doesn't have the capacity for. I'd much rather have the company of my animal companions for they always make me feel special and loved and understood.