Isn't it strange, when one feels horrible, or confused, or perhaps just sad, that there is always something there to help you through it all? I'm talking about pets.

I have just recently heard about a woman who was saved by her dog from a heart attack. Her dog pushed a button on the telephone that dialed 911.

I have a dog that means the world to me, though he has never saved my life or called someone on the phone, he's the best.

Duke is a 5 1/2-year-old German Shepherd, who weighs approximately 120 pounds. He's really just a big baby! All my friends are scared to death of him, he'll nudge his head under one of their arms and they'll run away.

To me, Duke is a giver of life, more special than anyone could ever imagine. We got him in 1991, a few months after my grandfather passed away. I believe that somehow Duke came to my family at the right time. Although a dog could never replace my grandfather, Duke replenished our spirits with his big brown eyes. He made us come alive again.

I don't know what my grandmother would have done, although she had all of us around to support her through this very difficult time, but she just couldn't smile. Who could blame her? They had been married for over 62 years. When Duke arrived, my grandmother didn't want to have anything to do with him. She couldn't believe that we could be so happy with a dog. When her mother passed away, my father bought a dog, and within a few weeks my grandmother felt tremendously better.

With Duke, it was the same; since Duke helped my father, sister and me, he eventually made my grandmother laugh again with his foolish tricks.

This is why I strongly believe that dogs, or any kind of pet, can make people happier and healthier. Having a small but important connection between humans, non-Homo sapiens and the mind, pets are the real fountain of youth. t