By Nike

HAVANA TIMES — For many years now, Cubans have been emigrating to all parts of the world. The family separation is very painful, leaving behind parents, siblings, and children with the hope of reuniting someday not too far in the future. That hope has not always come true, and many families have remained broken for life.

No one in this world can fix that separation. Those lost years can never be recovered for families that have already been split apart and are no longer part of each other’s daily lives — too many miles keep them apart.

This migration brings another kind of suffering: leaving behind another member of the family — pets. For many years this has happened, and in the best cases, the dog or cat, the most common pets in Cuba, is left with relatives or in the home where they lived, so the animal does not suffer the loss as much. But especially in the 1990s, during the misnamed Special Period, many purebred dogs were seen wandering the streets, lost and in poor condition due to the drastic abandonment they suffered.

I adopted two cats — one from my cousin and another from a neighbor who moved abroad years ago. It wandered around the neighborhood looking for shelter. They have adapted very well to my home as if they had been born here. They are very affectionate and follow me everywhere.

A friend told me she wants to take her pet with her when she moves abroad. There is a process that allows this if you have all the paperwork in order, such as the animal’s vaccinations and other required documents. Her little dog is a dachshund, and she loves her very much.

But a few days ago, the prices for these procedures were raised and are now almost impossible to afford. It was never cheap, but it used to be possible to take pets along so they wouldn’t be abandoned and families wouldn’t have to be separated from another loved one. My friend Ana is going crazy selling everything she can to pay for her beloved animal’s passage, because she says she’s not going anywhere without him.

There are many cases of pet abandonment to tell. There was a very friendly little dog named Canelo whose family left Cuba in the 2000s. He stayed on the block, and several neighbors gave him food and water. One day he would sleep on my porch, another day at what used to be his house, and that’s how he remained in his neighborhood.

There is also a very beautiful story about a dog whose human family gave him to a friend who lived in the countryside outside Havana. They had a farm and always kept several dogs. The family thought he would be very well off there, but after a few days the little dog returned home with his paws full of red dirt and completely exhausted. After that feat, they couldn’t send him away again. The grandparents — who were the ones staying in the country — kept him. This super-intelligent little dog won his grandparents’ love and recovered his home.

If our pets choose us and love us with unconditional love, why do we abandon them?

Read more from the diary of Nike here on Havana Times.