Animal life

Some weeks ago a good friend of mine had to put her cat down. Even though the cat had a good long life, 16 years, it is still unbelievably sad. Yes I know that people say that animals are not people, and indeed they are not, but they are still family members. Somebody who is there all the time, depending on you, and loving companions.

The reason I'm thinking about it, is that there is an older lady on my street, who has a dog. I see them almost every day, and she's walking with a stick very slowly, but even more slowly the dog limps along. He's a big black dog with deformed feet, and I cannot tell if he's in pain, but I would think so. Today he stopped when I passed by, I petted him on his big head and he just laid down, refusing to stand up. What can I do?

I cannot talk to the woman, the dog is probably her only companion, but I feel for the dog. It should be put down and out of his misery. I feel so helpless.