Woman's Best Friend

A highly publicized news story this week revolved around an (apparently not so much) domesticated chimpanzee's vicious attack on an owner's friend, which led to the shooting death of the chimp. While I'm not trying to downplay the horrible injuries of the victim, which include gouged eyes, a face so pummeled that it was blood soaked, and crushed hands, what I find particularly disturbing is the bizarre relationship that the owner, Sandra Herold, had with Travis, her chimp.

As detailed in an article in the New York Post:

"She fed him filet mignon and lobster tails. They shared cozy glasses of wine. They bathed and slept together. He tenderly brushed her hair. She gave him gifts and sweet kisses. He drew her pictures."

Besides the fact that my wife is indignant that Travis "out-romances" me - I can hear it right now, "You never draw me pictures!" - details about the intimate relationship shared between the owner and pet are pretty shocking. Some of the closeness is understandable when given the context of the deaths of her daughter and husband, but I can't help but think that it's tragic that she was either unable or unwilling to find sufficient human friendship which could offer her the support, compassion, love and affection that everybody needs and deserves.

Lest we completely cast her away as a crazy kook, I have a friend who had a really traumatic period in his life where his dog provided the unconditional love and tenderness that he desperately needed when everything else around him was falling apart. He attributes the loyalty and affection of his dog as key factor in perhaps keeping him from committing suicide or falling into deeper depression, and as a Christian, he muses hopefully that his dog will be in heaven (perhaps he was inspired by the Don Bluth movie).

But it's not just him. Thousands of pet owners spend thousands of dollars for medical care, grooming, "education", and even recreation for their pets, even at amounts greater than are spent for humans. Perhaps we ought to consider if we as a society over-value our animal friends, or maybe consider the root cause that human beings are so rotten that people would much rather invest time and energy in animal friendships?