Do you think animals go to heaven?

[cstraub]

My Aunt just lost her dog gretchen yesterday. She keeps saying that they will meet again in heaven. I'm not sure how I feel about this.

 

[hiwaygal]

to answer your question...yes, I believe pets go to heaven.

This story goes around in emails...and I think it's a wonderful story:

A man and his dog were walking along a road. The man was enjoying the scenery, when it suddenly occurred to him that he was dead. He remembered dying, and the dog walking beside him had been dead for years. He wondered where the road was leading them. After a while, they came to a high, white stone wall along one side of the road. It looked like marble. At the top of a long hill, it was broken by an arch that glowed in the sunlight. When he was standing before it, he saw a magnificent gate in the arch that looked like Mother of Pearl, and the street that led to the gate looked like pure gold.


He and the dog walked toward the gate, and as he got closer, he saw a man at a desk to one side. When he was close enough, he called out, "Excuse me, where are we?" "This is heaven, sir" the man answered. "Wow! Would you happen to have some water?" the man asked. "Of course, sir. Come right in, and I'll have some ice water brought right up." The man gestured, and the gate began to open. Gesturing toward his dog, he asked, "can my friend come in too? "I'm sorry sir, but we don't accept pets."


The man thought for a moment and then turned back towards the road and continued the way he had been going with his dog. After another long walk, and at the top of another long hill, he came to a dirt road that led through a farm gate that looked as if it had never been closed. There was no fence. As he approached the gate, he saw a man inside, leaning against a tree and reading a book. "Excuse me!" he called to the reader. "Do you have any water?"


"Yeah, sure, there's a pump over there." The man pointed to a place that couldn't be seen from outside the gate. "Come on in." "How about my friend here?" the traveller gestured to the dog. "There should be a bowl by the pump." They went through the gate and sure enough, there was an old-fashioned hand pump with a bowl beside it. The traveller filled the bowl and took a long drink himself, then gave some to the dog. When they were full, he and the dog walked back toward the man who was standing by the tree waiting for them.


"What do you call this place?" the traveller asked. "This is Heaven," was the answer. "Well, that's confusing," the traveller said. "The man down the road said that was Heaven too."


"Oh you mean the place with the gold street and pearly gates? Nope. That's Hell."


The traveller said, "doesn't it make you mad for them to use your name like that?"


"No. I can see how you might think so, but we're just happy that they screen out the folks who'd leave their best friends behind".

 

[lillygator]

is there any proof anyone or anything goes to heaven?

 

[staci]

Im not an extremely religious person, but I know most animals would be deserving of heaven as much, if not more, than their owners. So yes, I think that if there is a heaven, the gates are open to animals as well.

I love that little story up above about heaven/hell. So cute.

 

[poohandwendy]

Yes, I believe they do. I'm with Staci, I think they are far more deserving than most people.

 

[crz4mm2]

to answer your question...yes, I believe pets go to heaven.

This story goes around in emails...and I think it's a wonderful story:

A man and his dog were walking along a road. The man was enjoying the scenery, when it suddenly occurred to him that he was dead. He remembered dying, and the dog walking beside him had been dead for years. He wondered where the road was leading them. After a while, they came to a high, white stone wall along one side of the road. It looked like marble. At the top of a long hill, it was broken by an arch that glowed in the sunlight. When he was standing before it, he saw a magnificent gate in the arch that looked like Mother of Pearl, and the street that led to the gate looked like pure gold.


He and the dog walked toward the gate, and as he got closer, he saw a man at a desk to one side. When he was close enough, he called out, "Excuse me, where are we?" "This is heaven, sir" the man answered. "Wow! Would you happen to have some water?" the man asked. "Of course, sir. Come right in, and I'll have some ice water brought right up." The man gestured, and the gate began to open. Gesturing toward his dog, he asked, "can my friend come in too? "I'm sorry sir, but we don't accept pets."


The man thought for a moment and then turned back towards the road and continued the way he had been going with his dog. After another long walk, and at the top of another long hill, he came to a dirt road that led through a farm gate that looked as if it had never been closed. There was no fence. As he approached the gate, he saw a man inside, leaning against a tree and reading a book. "Excuse me!" he called to the reader. "Do you have any water?"


"Yeah, sure, there's a pump over there." The man pointed to a place that couldn't be seen from outside the gate. "Come on in." "How about my friend here?" the traveller gestured to the dog. "There should be a bowl by the pump." They went through the gate and sure enough, there was an old-fashioned hand pump with a bowl beside it. The traveller filled the bowl and took a long drink himself, then gave some to the dog. When they were full, he and the dog walked back toward the man who was standing by the tree waiting for them.


"What do you call this place?" the traveller asked. "This is Heaven," was the answer. "Well, that's confusing," the traveller said. "The man down the road said that was Heaven too."


"Oh you mean the place with the gold street and pearly gates? Nope. That's Hell."


The traveller said, "doesn't it make you mad for them to use your name like that?"


"No. I can see how you might think so, but we're just happy that they screen out the folks who'd leave their best friends behind".

 

[Galahad]

I don't think it's particularly important to be "right" about this little point of theology. If heaven is with my God, then I'm sure heaven is with my dogs too.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

I definitely do. Pets are loved and innocent and I believe they deserve to be in heaven. At least it makes me feel better to feel that they are, that maybe I'll get to see them again someday.

 

[Pooh Girl 71]

One of my most upsetting childhood memories was of a teacher at the Christian school I attended telling me that animals do NOT go to Heaven. I was beyond upset. It was my beleif that they do go to Heaven and I still hold that belief.

 

[labyrinth]

Im not an extremely religious person, but I know most animals would be deserving of heaven as much, if not more, than their owners. So yes, I think that if there is a heaven, the gates are open to animals as well.

I love that little story up above about heaven/hell. So cute.

What if it's a mean dog?

 

[MsDisney23]

I believe I will see my furbabies in Heaven!

 

[Skywalker]

I believe they do, too. How can Heaven be the ultimate reward and then leave people mourning for their beloved pets. Sounds like there would be too many miserable people there to call it "heaven". No, I believe in heaven we can rejoice in all that makes us happy, and the animals that we've loved throughout our lives would therefore need to have a place there as well.

And of course, there would be a "no pets" section as well for those that are scared of them or something.

 

[disney50fam]

Yes, I believe they do

 

[christineann]

I love the story, hiwaygal! Several years ago at a St. Francis service, our minister addressed the question of whether or not animals go to heaven. He said that heaven is perfect, so therefore, the animals are there.

I agree

 

[luv2nascar]

I know my grandfather is taking care of My Beloved Winston or vice versa. I know they will both be at the gates greeting me some day and Winston will jump on me and lick me just like old times. It is something I look forward to so much.

 

[slo]

I do believe my dog Sampson is in heaven and we will meet again someday.

 

[georgina]

Well, I'll be the voice of dissent. I think people are special to God, and heaven is a state of being with God and we will not be thinking about pets in that state.
I think dinosaurs would be out of place in heaven. Would all the animals that ever live be in heaven, or just beloved pets? My son's goldfish and gerbils? Personally, I don't think so.

 

[alliecats]

I am SURE of it. Of course they do.

 

[Poohnatic]

I always figured I'd find my pets in heaven.

Suzanne

 

[PrincessKitty1]

My very first dog I owned during adulthood, Connolly, I had from the time I was 23 until he died when I was 35. He was a big dog, 90 pounds, and large dogs tend to have fairly short lives. So at 12 1/2, he was pretty old and had slowed down a lot over the previous year.

A day or two before he became sick, I had a very vivid dream about him being young and frisky again, prancing around and running and jumping in the woods where we lived. He became very ill (pancreatitis) and died within a couple of days. I firmly believe I was given a glimpse of what his life was about to become, on the other side of the Rainbow Bridge.