Many
animals are very intelligent and have sensory and motor abilities
that dwarf ours. Dogs (even cats) are able to detect various
diseases and can warn humans of impending heart attacks and strokes.
Elephants, whales, hippos, giraffes and alligators use 'low
frequency sounds' to
communicate over long distances. Bats, dolphins, frogs, birds and
various rodents use 'high
frequency sounds'
to find food, communicate with others and navigate.
Many animals display wide ranging emotions...
joy, happiness, empathy, compassion, grief...even resentment and
embarrassment.
Androcles
and the Lion
(Said to be written by Aesop ~ the great Greek storyteller always
summed up his stories
from the animal kingdom with a moral.)
The
lesson in this tale: “Gratitude
is the sign of a noble soul.”
It happened in ancient times that a slave named Androcles escaped
from his master and fled into the forest...and wandered there for a
long time until he was weary. Just then, he heard a lion near him
moaning and groaning and looking at Androcles, who saw that the lion
was holding out his right paw, which was covered with blood and very
much swollen. Looking more closely at it, Androcles saw a great big
thorn pressed into the paw, which was the cause of all the lion's
trouble.
Plucking up courage, he seized hold of the thorn and drew it out
of the lion's paw, who roared with pain when the thorn came out, but
soon after, found such relief from it that he rubbed up against
Androcles and showed that he knew, that he was truly thankful for
being relieved from such pain.
One day, a number of soldiers came marching through the forest and
found Androcles. They took him prisoner and brought him back to
town...and he was condemned to death because he had fled from his
master. Now, it used to be the custom to throw murderers and other
criminals to the lions and on the appointed day, he was led forth
into the arena.
The Emperor of Rome was in the royal box that day and gave the
signal for the lion to come out and attack Androcles. But when it
came out of its cage and got near Androcles, what do you think it
did?
Instead of jumping upon him, the lion rubbed up against him
and stroked him with its paw.
It was of course the lion which Androcles had met in the forest.
The Emperor summoned Androcles to him. When he told the Emperor how
the lion was showing gratitude for his having relieved it of the
thorn, the Emperor pardoned Androcles and ordered his master to set
him free...while the lion was taken back into the forest...and let
loose to enjoy freedom once more.
True
Stories of Animals Rescuing People from Certain Death
Dog
Protects Little Girl:
A mother in Florida was tending to her garden which backed on one of
the many inner canals. Her dog, Chico (a Lab Retriever) lay nearby
while the small girl played with her colourful ball. A lengthy
poisonous snake lay coiled in the morning sun. As Janie ran to
retrieve her ball, the snake hustled into 'strike position' to
immobilize 'the prey' (his venom of modified saliva delivered through
its fangs). Chico, sensing harm to Janie, put himself between the
reptile and her...and he was 'fanged' with poisonous venom. Chico was
rushed to the local veterinary clinic for serum injection.
Gorilla
Saves 3-Year-Old Boy:
In zoos, gorillas are enclosed in a space that they can call their
own...they are happy to eat, frolic and mate for the entertainment of
gawking onlookers. But that territorial bubble was popped by a small
boy at the Brooklyn Zoo in Illinois...he was right over the gorilla
enclosure when he fell over the fence. The 18-foot drop left him
unconscious and with a critical head injury. Binti Jua stepped
in...one of the zoo's gorillas who came to the boy's aid by cradling
him in her arms and then bringing him to the enclosure door where
paramedics could get to him. The police and staff were quick to note
that the situation could have been much worse without Binti's
assistance.
Whale
Saves Drowning Diver:
The Polarland Aquarium in Harbin, China held a free diving contest
in their 20-foot-deep, Arctic-temperature whale tank with 7 divers
who were not allowed to use breathing apparatus. The winning prize
was to apply for a job as a whale-trainer. Yang Yun, 26 years old,
when reaching the bottom of the pool, her leg cramped and prevented
her from swimming which would have led to imminent drowning...that
is, if Mila, one of the 2 beluga whales in the tank, didn't see the
trouble and swim to her rescue. Mila grabbed Yang Yun's leg with her
mouth and started forcefully pushing her to the surface. The diver
survived...and would not have, without Mila's help.
Lion
Saves Girl from Kidnappers:
These 300-pound, 6-foot-long cats can look at you as nothing more
than a delicacy at a fancy restaurant they like to call Africa.`
Lions also have a softer kitten center that leads them to care for
some unlikely creatures. In this instance, it's a 12-year-old Kenyan
girl who had been missing for a week. She had been abducted by
several men who were trying to force her to marry one of them. But
when the authorities found her, the kidnappers had fled. Instead she
was surrounded by 3 lions that had scared away, and hopefully maimed
her captors. The police said the lions had been guarding her for
about a day when they got there...and ensuring that nothing else got
close to her.
Cat
Saved Family from House Fire:
Dianne Busscher was wakened at 4:45 a.m.by the cries of the family
cat, Oreo, coming from the garage. Going downstairs, she saw smoke
and flames. She quickly grabbed the cat and rushed back inside to
waken her husband and their 5 children. The fire destroyed the garage
and a bedroom. None of the family was harmed...thanks to Oreo's
startling cries.
Elephants Paid Their Respects to Late “Elephant Whisperer”
Lawrence Anthony: (1950-2012):
A
legend in South Africa and author of 3 books, including the best
seller, “The
Elephant Whisperer”.
He bravely rescued wildlife and rehabilitated elephants all over the
globe from human atrocities, which included the courageous rescue of
Baghdad Zoo animals during US invasion in 2003.
On March 7, 2012, Lawrence Anthony died.
He
is remembered and missed by his wife, 2 sons, 2 grandsons and
numerous elephants. Two days after his passing, the wild elephants
showed up at his home led by two large matriarchs. Separate wild
herds arrived in droves to say good-bye to their beloved man-friend.
A total of 33 elephants walked patiently over 12 miles to get to his
South African Wildlife Conservation house. Witnessing this spectacle,
humans were obviously in awe...not only because of the supreme
intelligence and precise timing that these elephants sensed about
Lawrence's passing... also because of the profound memory and emotion
the beloved animals evoked in such an organized way: Walking
slowly, for days, making their way in a solemn one-by-one queue from
their habitat to his house.
These elephants had not been to his house prior to that day for well
over 3 years.
The elephants obviously wanted to pay their deep respects, honouring
their friend who'd saved their lives...so much respect that they
stayed for 2 days and 2 nights. Then one morning they left, making
their long journey back home.
SOMETHING IN THE UNIVERSE IS GREATER & DEEPER THAN HUMAN
INTELLIGENCE!
Merle Baird-Kerr...written August 14, 2017
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