The deep bond that exists between best friends often crosses racial, age, and even species lines. It is common for animals and birds to form lasting friendships. While certain species are more social than others, there is a biological need to connect with fellow beings because we are all a part of nature. Two pets living in the same home can become best buddies. Single people with a dog or cat companion will insist the animal is their best friend. Dogs have always been considered man’s best friend, but cats, birds, and even outdoor visitors such as squirrels, can form friendships with us. Friends keep us emotionally healthy by helping to affirm our sense of self-worth.
We have heard stories like The Incredible Journey, about animals travelling long distances to find their long lost pal. I have an incredible story of my own. Fourteen years ago my husband and I had put our home up for sale. We had two cats at the time. Briga was a stray that had adopted me six years earlier. Aslan was a Main Coon that we had taken in because his owners were moving into an apartment and could not keep him. Each morning they would go out through the cat door and return a little while later, depending on how cold it was outside. One morning in early spring; however, Aslan did not return. By the end of the day when he still had not appeared, I grew increasingly upset. He did not return the next morning, or the next day or the next. I plastered posters with his photograph all over the neighborhood. I put them up in veterinary offices and begged them to contact me in case someone had stolen him. A few weeks later the house sold and we had to move. My heart was broken and when moving day came, I was miserable. What if he finally showed up and we were gone? I kept thinking about the night before his disappearance when he came up on the bed and lay close at my side. This was not normal behavior for him. Was he telling me goodbye?
Seven years later I moved back to the same city and I was living approximately five miles as the crow flies, from where I had previously been living. My neighbor fed the stray cats there. He said they travelled in groups and his place was a part of their regular circuit. I remember looking out the window and seeing that one of them looked exactly like Aslan. The next time I saw the cat, I called his name and he came up to me and let me pet him. I knew in my heart that it was Aslan, but I knew if I told anyone they would not believe me. I saw him and petted him a couple of more times and the next time, Briga was outside with me. He ran up to her and the recognition in both their faces was undeniable. They had never been best buds, but she had taught him how to hunt and in the five or six years that they had been together, they had gotten along well.
I began to coax Aslan inside. I had acquired another cat by then, Shamu, but she was jealous and resented his presence. I tried to keep Aslan in with me for a couple of nights, but he would meow at the window. He missed his feral friends. I knew that I needed to let him go. After seven years of not knowing what had happened to him, I at last had closure. I knew he was where he wanted to be and with his best pals. Just like in our human relationships, sometimes letting go of one we love is the most loving thing we can do. As it turns out, Briga was my real best friend. Aslan had apparently found his within the feral cat colony. While not every friend can be our best friend, the love that connects us all, leaves its tracks permanently in our hearts.
