Losing a pet
Note: thank you to Kathleen Chamberlin, author of “Marcy Mary: The Memoirs of a Dachshund-American Princess, The early Years” for sharing her thoughts on losing a pet. Her book is about the adventures of a dachshund puppy adopted by a suburban family. You can learn a lot more about Kathleen and her book at http://marcymary.com.
The loss of a loved one is traumatic, a time when lots of of us call upon our faith. family pets are loved ones and I’m convinced that faith is indicated to sustain us when a pet dies.
I was reminded of the depth of a pet’s loss as I enjoyed a “fifty something” woman with substantial tears glistening in her eyes. She was telling me about her childhood dog, Petey. This faithful collie walked her to school every morning and was waiting to walk her home when the school day was over.
Although Petey, who had become Old Pete, died lots of years ago, his loss was still keenly felt in the heart of a schoolgirl who was now a mature woman.
Recently, my spouse and I were walking our two dachshunds, Noodle and Archie, through the neighborhood. A woman was walking toward us. When she identified the dogs, she put her hands to her mouth and uttered a heartfelt “oooh.”
Within seconds she was greeting the dogs, petting them and silently crying. We were soon joined by her spouse who could not keep his hands off Noodle, an auburn tiny with a gray muzzle. Noodle was lavishing this stranger with lots of wet kisses. They told us that Tootsie, their auburn tiny had died just a few weeks before.
They took out a cell phone and showed us a picture of Tootsie. She did undoubtedly bear an uncanny resemblance to Noodle.
Was this a chance meeting? Možno. I will say this: these people were visitors in the neighborhood who just happened to be outside when we were walking the dogs.
Last year, a dear pal from across the country was checking out us when his cherished cat died. We supported him with listening, love and prayer, but the check out was touched by the deep pain of his loss. As he spoke of Sprocket, it was clear that the bond he had with his feline companion was very strong.
A few months later, I received an e-mail from this friend. He and his partner heard Sprocket walk across the hardwood floors. At times, my pal said he sensed Sprocket’s presence.
I didn’t think much about this at the time, thinking it under “maybe.” but then I had a similar personal experience.
My spouse is a pragmatist, very down to earth, and not given to unusual experiences. but we were sitting on our sofa, with Archie and Noodle snoozing contentedly between us, when we heard the sound of a dachshund flapping its ears — a very distinctive sound.
My spouse went to investigate. no one was in the house and no one was outside. Was it our beloved Loopy-doxie, who had left us not long before? Does the special bond between us and family pets that have passed often breach time and space? I simply don’t know.
As the stories above illustrate, the loss of a pet is particularly poignant. Those of us who believe in a hereafter may wonder if our family pets will join us there. We imagine a place of happiness, fulfillment and happiness that a benevolent designer has prepared for us. here we will rejoin loved ones.
I am certain that a Creator, who cares enough about us to prepare this terrific place, will also reunite us with our cherished pets. This belief helps me tremendously when memories intrude and I need to hold Tigger the cat or Loopy the pet dog — our dearly departed — just one a lot more time.
Kathleen is visualized with her dachshund Trixie-Noodle.