{"id":7813,"date":"2014-02-14T01:44:43","date_gmt":"2014-02-14T09:44:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.happycow.net\/blog\/?p=7813"},"modified":"2014-02-14T10:32:38","modified_gmt":"2014-02-14T18:32:38","slug":"animal-love","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.happycow.net\/blog\/animal-love\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Amazing Animal Love Stories"},"content":{"rendered":"
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When you think about love, if you are like most people, you are just thinking about\u00a0romantic love between two humans. Time to crack that definition wide open to\u00a0include all living beings and love that crosses species barriers. If we could clearly\u00a0see how much other species love life and love others, it might change how we view\u00a0them. This collection of love stories is the tip of the iceberg. The accounts of other\u00a0species loving and risking their lives for those they love for their own and other\u00a0species are countless.<\/p>\n

1. Most people get that dogs know all about love. In the best situations, they are our\u00a0familiars and part of our family. Our rescued dog, Bapu, left the yard of our less-than-caring neighbors and came through our dog door and never left. He doesn\u2019t\u00a0know that it is Valentine\u2019s week. He thinks everyday is Valentine\u2019s day. He lets\u00a0me know I am his Valentine by following me around everywhere I go (hence his\u00a0nickname: Barnacle Boy). He stares up at my eyes and always has at least one paw\u00a0touching a part of my body. I was never crazy about needy guys, but Bapu is the\u00a0exception.<\/p>\n

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Bapu<\/p><\/div>\n

2. While we get the dog love thing, most of us would not have a clue about fish\u00a0emotions. Anyone who really understands fish emotions and intelligence knows\u00a0that their world does not end at the glass when they are kept in an aquarium.\u00a0Studies have shown that when violent people enter the room where an aquarium\u00a0is kept, the heart rate in the fish speeds up and they avoid the surface of the water.\u00a0But, when someone who has been kind to them enters the room, they relax. And,\u00a0many fish, it turns out, love affection from non-fish companions. A friend of mine\u00a0purchased an aquarium and fish before she realized that buying fish and\u00a0keeping them captive is cruel, because it does not come close to what their life would\u00a0be if they had freedom in the wild. She had them in her life for many years. When\u00a0my friend would walk in the door, the fish would come to the surface, but not for\u00a0food. She would gently pet their backs and they would compete for the spot under\u00a0her finger. She tested their motives by adding more food to the aquarium after one\u00a0of their meals. They ignored the food and came over to be pet.<\/p>\n

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3. We have been volunteering at Jungle Friends Primate Sanctuary<\/a> all winter. I\u00a0thought I knew a lot about monkeys and other primates. If you had asked me if I loved them, I would have said yes. But, I had no idea of the depth of love I could feel for\u00a0them until I got to know them personally as individuals. This cold winter has been\u00a0rough on the monkeys. They are in large outdoor habitats with the companion(s) of\u00a0their choosing. They have the option to go into a heated building, but they prefer to\u00a0be outdoors. I have witnessed the love and caring they have for each other as one\u00a0monkey spoons another monkey under a fleece blanket on a cold night. As I come\u00a0by the habitats, they peek out from under the blanket to see who is passing by and\u00a0then go back to their cuddling under the little fleece tent they make over themselves.\u00a0Most of them have come from a history of suffering for decades in labs or as \u201cpets\u201d\u00a0in homes that were not equipped to meet their needs. Many are physically and\u00a0mentally\/emotionally damaged. Despite the history of suffering, they learn what\u00a0love is. They find the companion who will hug them through a cold night or nurse\u00a0their wounds.<\/p>\n