Coffee with a canine: Jessica Pierce & Maya

Today's featured duo at Coffee with a Canine: Jessica Pierce, author of The Last Walk: Reflections on Our Pets at the Ends of Their Lives, and Maya.

Pierce, on how Maya got her name:

Maya is named after a guinea pig. Said guinea pig belonged to one of my daughter’s kindergarten friends. Our Vizsla, Odysseus, had been invited inside this friend’s house one day, during a play date. Ody proceeded down to their basement to visit the guinea pig. Later that night, the poor guinea pig died mysteriously. My daughter’s five year old friend was convinced that Ody had caused the little creature to have a delayed heart attack. Ody was branded a murderer. We adopted Maya shortly after the guinea pig debacle, and it just seemed fitting to honor the life of the deceased guinea pig. Maia is also a goddess in Greek mythology, and so the name...[read on]

About The Last Walk, from the publisher:

From the moment when we first open our homes—and our hearts—to a new pet, we know that one day we will have to watch this beloved animal age and die. The pain of that eventual separation is the cruel corollary to the love we share with them, and most of us deal with it by simply ignoring its inevitability.

With The Last Walk, Jessica Pierce makes a forceful case that our pets, and the love we bear them, deserve better. Drawing on the moving story of the last year of the life of her own treasured dog, Ody, she presents an in-depth exploration of the practical, medical, and moral issues that trouble pet owners confronted with the decline and death of their companion animals. Pierce combines heart-wrenching personal stories, interviews, and scientific research to consider a wide range of questions about animal aging, end-of-life care, and death. She tackles such vexing questions as whether animals are aware of death, whether they're feeling pain, and if and when euthanasia is appropriate. Given what we know and can learn, how should we best honor the lives of our pets, both while they live and after they have left us?

The product of a lifetime of loving pets, studying philosophy, and collaborating with scientists at the forefront of the study of animal behavior and cognition, The Last Walk asks—and answers—the toughest questions pet owners face. The result is informative, moving, and consoling in equal parts; no pet lover should miss it.

Learn more about The Last Walk: Reflections on Our Pets at the Ends of Their Lives at Jessica Pierce's website and blog.

Read--Coffee with a Canine: Jessica Pierce and Maya.

--Marshal Zeringue