You’ve heard it a million times before: dogs are man’s best friend. And you’ll hear it many times over until you think that dogs aren’t that great. However, what you don’t know is the reason that dogs are so much better than cats; not just in terms of the amount of time we may spend with them, but also in terms of everyday activities people have with them, the routines we build in our life around them.
Time and again, humanity has seen some beautiful and heartwarming examples of how dogs have won our hearts with the things they do for us. Here are a few stories that we wanted to share with you
Zanjeer, named after a 1973 Bollywood movie, was added to the Mumbai police force in 1993 after the dreadful Mumbai blasts. He was trained at the Dog Training Centre of the Criminal Investigation Department in Pune. Zanjeer dedicated his entire life to the force and to protect humans. During his illustrious career, he helped locate more than 1000 bombs and grenades!
After serving the force for the majority of his life, Zanjeer passed away in November 2000. He was a beloved member of the police force and to honor his stellar service, he was buried with complete state honors.
Zanjeer’s impeccable career set the benchmark for the performance of canine units in India. Indian police forces now use several local and foreign dog breeds as part of their dog squads. The Delhi Police also recruited several street dogs and trained them primarily for security purposes, ensuring the security of the citizens and providing homeless street dogs with food and shelter. Even after he died, Zanjeer remained a true friend to humans.
Kerry Irving, based in Cumbria, UK, suffered from constant chronic pain due to a major accident in 2006. His condition meant he could no longer walk which led him to fall into severe depression. However, in 2008, his life changed by 180 when he adopted his dog, Max, an English Springer Spaniel.
Kerry wanted to share with the world how Max helped him out of his depression and improved his quality of life. So he began posting videos and pictures documenting Max’s unconditional love and support on social media, which turned him into a social media celebrity. In 2020, when COVID-19 struck the world, Max and Kerry streamed their walks and daily life on social media, which allowed people all over the world to join in on the fun. Their heartwarming posts provided people with much-needed comfort and emotional support and gave them respite from the uncertainty and hopelessness that people were experiencing.
Their work during the pandemic turned Max into a virtual therapy dog for people all over the world. This eventually led to him making public appearances, school visits, and raising money for charities, like PDSA, which was nearly £300,000!
Max was awarded the PDSA Order of Merit and even met the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge at Kensington Palace.
For his wonderful service to humans, Max was honored with a bronze statue, installed on a bench in Hope Park in the Lake District.
Perhaps the most famous dog in history for the tremendous loyalty he showed to his owner. In 1924, Hidesaburo Ueno, a professor of agriculture at the Tokyo Imperial University, adopted Hachiko, a white Akita, born on a farm a year ago. The professor and the dog lived together in Shibuya. Hachiko, nicknamed Hachi, would see his owner off daily at the Shibuya Station, where he boarded his train for work and waited until the professor from work. A year later in May 1925, the professor suffered a cerebral hemorrhage while lecturing his class and died. For nine years, nine months, and 15 days, Hachi waited for his master to come back each day without knowing about his master’s death. On March 8, 1935, Hachiko died of terminal cancer in Shibuya. After his death, Hachiko was cremated, and his ashes were buried beside his beloved owner in the Aoyama Cemetery in Tokyo.
Hachiko was commemorated for his unwavering loyalty with a bronze statue crafted by Teru Ando and was placed at the Shibuya Station. In honor of his memory and loyalty, people gather annually at the station on 8th March, every year.
After reading these heartwarming stories, you must’ve jumped ship to Team Dog! If these stories didn’t steal your heart, then we also have some scientific reasons to convince you:
It is so natural for us to think of dogs as our fur babies, and science back that up with some latest research. This research concluded that when we stare into the eyes of our beloved pooches, it activates the same hormonal response in us that bonds us with human babies. The hormone produced is called oxytocin, which is vital for inducing maternal bonding. The increase in this hormone’s production occurs in both humans and their dogs when they stare into each other’s eyes.
The next time someone says you’re crazy because you think of your dog like it’s your child, show them this article!
Studies have shown that children are at a lower risk of developing asthma and allergies growing if they are exposed to dogs. The dust that is collected in a household due to a dog’s fur promotes the growth of a unique microbiome in their guts that prevents kids from developing these allergies.
Humans also tend to be more active if they live with dogs. Dogs require regular exercise and 60 percent of owners who walk their dogs, have a regular exercise routine when compared to people who don’t own dogs. These owners are more physically fit when compared to people without dogs. They are our furry little fitness machines!
Many studies have concluded that dogs are very good at reducing our stress and anxiety levels. One way they help us is by giving us a sense of purpose and responsibility. We take better care of ourselves because we know that our dogs are dependent on us. They help us develop a routine in our daily lives.
On the other hand, we have relied on them for many things. Many cancer patients, people suffering from PTSD, etc have relied on dogs for emotional support. During the pandemic, dogs played a vital role by filling the void for this support in lieu of humans. Previously, we discussed how oxytocin is produced when we look into our dog’s eyes. Similarly, the mere presence of our dogs has been shown to mitigate anxiety symptoms like heart rate, respiration rate, and blood pressure, and also reduce the stress hormone, cortisol.
To sum it up, dogs are the best blessing that humans have ever received. Their bravery, love, and unfaltering loyalty toward us humans make them the best creatures to be our pets. We should be very appreciative of these wonderful animals and do our best to take care of them and show our love and gratitude to them whenever we can. After all, they deserve it.
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