Animals with Heart...

I've been noticing lately just how animals and birds communicate with each other, in sometimes very loving ways. Our golden retriever "treed" a chipmunk recently and the poor little creature was stuck upside down, halfway up the tree. He was too high and too scared for us to help (besides he fact that we didn't want to get bit!) so we watched from afar to see what he (she?) would do. Before long, another chipmunk scampered up the tree and seemingly led the frightened one down to safety, much to the dismay of our dog..who appeared to be proud of his prowess. The chipmunks happily scampered across our yard and disappeared into the woods, chattering all the while.

On another occasion, my husband was driving and a chipmunk ran out in front of him. The little guy (the chipmunk, not my husband), froze in the middle of the road as the car screeched to a halt. They played the waiting game, neither willing to move for fear of what would happen, when suddenly another chipmunk ran out into the street and nudged the other...as if to say "get the hell out of here!" The two chipmunks happily ran off into the woods and my husband continued on with his travels.

Dogs amaze me. They have an uncanny sense of loyalty that is so incredibly moving and their loyalty doesn't stop with just people, it's with other animals as well. How many times have you seen pictures or videos of dogs standing vigil over another wounded dog? How many pictures or videos have you seen of dogs becoming heroes because they've risked their own life to save another? Our local news station featured a story of a dog who was rescued from a burning building only to run back into the blazing inferno. A fire fighter ran in after him and found him standing next to a box filled with kittens and refused to leave. The fire fighter was able to save them all, but without the dog the poor kittens would have succumbed to the fire.

What really tugs at my heart strings are the dogs that are broken hearted, confused and scared but still refuse to leave the side of a loved one that has died, be it animal or human. They are loyal to the end and then some.

For them it is not "till death do us part."

I'm an avid birdwatcher and have feeders at the edge of my deck. I've noticed that pairs of birds will swoop down to the feeder but only one will actually feed; the other will perch itself on the deck railing and wait for it's mate to feed him or her. So one bird dutifully gathers feed and then gently feeds the other. I'm thinking they're husband and wife teams and wonder who is feeding who. In the summer it's easy to tell because the male plumage is brighter and more colorful, but in the winter it's sometimes hard to tell. Either way it's so sweet to watch as one patiently waits and the other feeds!

These 4 legged (and 2 legged) creatures are not only smarter than we realize, they have heart. They genuinely care for each other and it's amazing to witness it in action.

Whether it's lions or tigers or elephants in the thick of an African jungle or the domestic beast of the city....all animals care about one another. There's so many cases of animals helping other animals and it's so incredibly touching.

The thing I'm touched by the most, though, is the loyalty of dogs. I see videos and read stories of how dogs are loyal right to the end and how some become doggie heroes for bravely saving someone's life. They truly are man's best friend.

These 4 legged (and 2 legged) creatures are not only smarter than we realize, they do have hearts....made of gold.