How the death of Argos, Odysseus’ faithful dog, still haunts us
The quiet, devastating reunion of master and dog, recently given the Hollywood treatment, remains one of the most poignant scenes in Western literature
I once came across a book titled, The Last Walk, with a worn-out dog collar on the front cover. I lost all interest in browsing and quickly left the bookstore. As a lifelong owner of cats and dogs as well as other animals, I have had too many last walks. Some walks I knew were likely to be our last together. Others I didn’t suspect would come to an end; I thought there was still time.
I often wonder whether that book sold well. Perhaps it appealed to some people. My wife and I, though, have been too traumatised to relive or to be reminded of what we have had to go through as animal parents.
But the older we get, the more grateful we are for their final moments. They show us how living things die, and when the time comes, it won’t be much different for us both. Death isn’t scary; it’s almost mundane.
We have had animals who died from cancer after a long treatment; unusual conditions the vets couldn’t really explain; poisoning through sheer negligence on my part; neglected diabetes leading to ketoacidosis because we were too ignorant about the condition.
Some died quickly, an easy and mostly painless death. A few had suffered more, perhaps needlessly, if only I had been more knowledgeable and responsible, or had better vets at the time. Those deaths still haunt me.