On Wed, Mar 18, 2009 at 4:49 PM, William Robb <[email protected]> wrote:
> Sorry, I've never been a man of my word when it involves shutting up... I guess neither am I... ;-) > There are numerous studies that show that elderly people who keep dogs tend > to live longer and are able to stay in their own homes caring for themselves > longer if they have a dog around the house. Absolutely! That's a wonderful thing - for both the dog (or cat) and the human. > Apparently, having something around that needs your care and returns your > love keeps you motivated to continue caring for yourself. That works for my girlfriend. ;-) > > There are many incidents of therapy dogs that have made some pretty > incredible breakthroughs with people who have been brain damaged, either > through injury or disease. > It seems that sometimes dogs can do what the best psychologists are unable > to do. > Most of these dogs are the toy breeds, simply because they are smaller and > easier to manage. Ah, but now you contradict yourself. In your example the toy breed (in this case, at least) has a function that goes beyond vanity. Here's an instance where both the dog and human benefit due to the dog's small size, and so to my mind it's ethically acceptable to breed for that purpose (small size). Human benefits from the companionship and resulting motivation, dog benefits because their size allows them in a situation where they are loved and nurtured and cared. > > Food for thought.... Indeed! See? We can agree on something! Holy crap, I think the skies are parting and I see a Heavenly Host of Angels being led by a guy on a white horse with his eyes on fire and his clothes dipped in blood. Hmmm, could be something significant happening here. I'll get back to you guys in a few minutes... ;-) cheers, frank -- "Sharpness is a bourgeois concept." -Henri Cartier-Bresson -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
