Fill the Earth and Subdue it…

It happened all of a sudden.  What was the direct cause I still do not know.  I have rehearsed over and over again in my mind the events that led up to the incident.  Everything appeared fine.  Then out of no where he pulled up limp.

I have participated in athletic competition for over 40 years, 12 of which have been organized and I have experienced injuries for sure.  I have,  thankfully, never torn a ligament in my knees.  Being a man of stature, usually the knees are the first things to go.  Yet I have been blessed in that area, only having suffered ankle injuries.  So you can imagine my horror when my puppy (as much as one can call a 100 pound Doberman a “puppy”) started favoring his right hind leg.  Concerned, I rushed him to the veterinarian for an evaluation.  He informed me, regrettably, that Toby had suffered a partial ACL tear.  This injury brings with it lameness, a great deal of discomfort for the dog and a hefty price tag for surgery – upwards of $3000.  Had this happened 10 months ago my response would have been a no brainer – schedule the surgery.  However, because I find myself unemployed with one child in college and the other in private Christian school and growing obligations, I am forced to ask the question what is the appropriate response.

As is my custom, I sought the advice of my father.  Having himself grown up in the country, he has been the owner of many dogs.  Now, by seeking his counsel I knew that I was in for a lecture on husbandry.  I grew up in his household after all and knew that getting a simple answer from him does not come without obtaining his philosophical viewpoint.  However, his perspective on the matter was quite intriguing.  He reminded me that had this happened to my dog 40 years ago he would either have to live with the ailment, had his leg amputated or would have been put down.  No owner would have even considered spending what amounted to a month’s wages on restoring an animal’s leg. This had nothing to do with the value of the dog in the life of the family.  It was strictly a decision based on economics and priorities.  The dog was a pet not a person.

As I reflected from this vantage point I rehearsed in my own mind all of the pets I have had thus far in my lifetime.  I thought about the dogs I have called my own – Sidney, Billy D Beau, Clancey and Toby.  I loved them all.  They were like having young children in my life.  They depended upon me for their sustenance and comfort.  I was the center of their world.  When I came home they were there to greet me and to answer my bidding.  Yes, they were like having four-legged youngsters.  However, the operative word here is “like”.  They weren’t.  They were not children.  They were not people.  They were dogs.

At what point did we begin to ascribe human status to our animals?  When did our animals become more than possessions but members of our family like parents or children?  There is a big term that we use to describe this – anthropomorphism – attributing human characteristics to non-human beings.  We have ascribed to our pets a status as if they are like us.  We believe that they have thoughts and feelings just like people, holding that they even process information as we do.  I am not an animal behaviorist, nor have I gone to school to know and understand animal psychology.  Yet I understand that

I believe the reason we have given our animals this new status is because it makes us godlike.  God said in Genesis 1:28,

²⁸ God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”

With this command comes the responsibility to care for all of creation.  We have been made stewards of the Earth, given charge to make sure that all creatures great and small, live.  This is the dominion mandate.  God exercises His Supreme rule over creation vicariously thorough us.  It is in this manner that He demonstrates His glorious provision, compassion and grace.  The dominion mandate broken by sin is dominance, an abuse of the authority given to us.  It has as its apex the exaltation of me.  All that I do I do with me as the focus.  Animals respond solely based upon instinct and not emotionally or volitionally.  By ascribing to them human responses I give them a will and with this will comes the false belief that they are choosing me.  I become the center of their world thus lifting me up.  Ever since the serpent told the woman that you will be like God we have attempted to do everything we can to be just that – like God.  And by raising the status of animals in my life I get just that much closer to having beings worship me.

To attribute to anything characteristics that are not inherent in them is distorted and twisted.  I love Toby.  Make no mistake about it.  I want to believe he loves me.  However, Toby was adopted less than two years ago.  Prior to me, he had another master.  I want to believe that he loves me more than he loved his other master.  As a matter of fact I want to believe that he did not love his other master at all.  At the least, I want to believe that there is something different about me that sets me apart from the master that raised him for 7 years since his youth.  However, logic has to set in as some point.  Why did he cling so quickly to me?  It actually was within a matter of days.  Was it because I was this awe inspiring benefactor?  Or was it because I conveyed traits that demanded obedience?  No.  It was because I became the new alpha male in his life.  He became part of a new pack.  He has instinctively adapted as all animals do.  Still I want it to be more; I want to elevate him to a higher status.  I want this to be based upon a free will decision he has made.  There is something heinously idolatrous about this.

What will become of Toby’s ACL tear is yet to be decided.  I will be making a decision in the next couple weeks.  It will be a difficult decision to say the least.  Emotionally I am all-in with this animal.  He was my sidekick in Baltimore.  Despite this, I must remember that this is not the ruptured knee of my son and must weigh in the balance my call, my full call to stewardship.