September 3, 2008

• Our Dog Story Gets Even Better!

  Yesterday was an emotional draining ordeal of a day for me.  I had really used every ounce of energy to get “Lottie” (the lost dog’s name) to a safe place.  I’d even considered personally paying a vet, in our small city, to board her for a week until I could get a hold of the owner by leaving a note on their door (since the address was on the dog’s tag).

  As you know, we found the veterinarian who normally cares for Lottie and we got dressed in a nanosecond!  I loaded the girls into the Suburban with a/c going to cool it down, grabbed Sampson’s leash (that once belonged to a German Shepherd *I* owned), and went to the back to call Lottie.  She was gone!  There was a patch of dirt under the side gate that had been freshly dug and my heart sank.  I went to the street, looked both ways, calling her name, and no Lottie.  I was prepared to drive the streets looking for her when I felt (in my own spirit) God telling me to check the side of the house where the two a/c units are running.  It’s shady and the units put off a breeze.  Maybe she didn’t hear me call her because of the roar from the units.

  Guess who was there?  Yep!  Good ol’ Lottie.  I put the leash on her, while she sat still, and through the gate we went.  She happily jumped into the back of the Suburban when I told her, “Let’s go home, Lottie!”

  With the rains moving in, I KNEW I had to find her a safe place on Tuesday.  I took this picture this morning of where she had been sleeping.  The rain isn’t pouring, yet, but this area will soon be soggy.
  

  I took her to the vet.  This was the neatest veterinarian hospital I had ever been to and was super clean.  They had two parrots out of their cages sitting atop the cages.  The girls went around to see the birds when the gal took Lottie back and we waited for our leash.  The girls called to me that a cat was playing on the floor with a lizard.  They motioned for me to come and I, skeptically, went around the desk.  I saw a huge toy iguana (bigger than the cat) having the top of its head licked by this cat, who had her one arm around the iguana to hold it close to her.  THEN . . . the “toy” iguana’s tail moved, it’s arms spread out, and up (high and stretched) came its head, so the cat could lick the underside of his neck!!!!!!!!!1  Where was my camera when I needed it????

  The vet said there would be no charge to Lotti’s family (I was going to offer some money up front to board her) and were SUPER nice.  I left a note for the owner in case she wanted to call and ask any questions.

  We left there and went to Home Depot to (FINALLY) buy the paint for the two bedrooms.  Next was a quick stop at Wal-Mart, where I bought 2 chicken breast strips – my “lunch.”  Actually, I had eaten NOTHING all day and it was 2:30pm.  I have hypoglycemia and normally would have never made it that long without eating!  I don’t know if it was my adrenaline or God’s strength that enabled me to go that long without a bite of food (and still function, I might add!!).  I picked up 2 prescriptions, a few food items, and (mainly) dog and cat food.

  Jesse came home before us and had brought some fried chicken for the girls.  While we were eating  an early dinner, the phone rang and it was Lotti’s owner’s son.  He said thank you a million times and told me he was living a few miles from our house with his grandparents, while his mom was in Texas.  Lottie had to cross two busy roads to get to us – a miracle that she made it.  He said he was sure his mother would call later, and she did – an hour later.

  Get this, she had been in Texas being “briefed” and was calling me from Lawton, OK at a military base.  She is due to be shipped to Kuwait later this week!  She said her thanks yous over and over and that Lottie was her son’s dog that he had gotten from the pound a few years ago.  She said they had another bigger dog that cried the whole time Lottie was gone – cried to the point the police were called out one night by the grandparent’s neighbors.  Anyway, the idea of her son losing his mom and dog all in a span of 2 weeks was heart wrenching.  I thanked her for serving in the military and she grew silent.  Stone, cold silent.  I thought I had said something wrong, but she choked back tears and said, “Not one person has ever expressed appreciation or what I do.”  We said our good-byes and she said Lottie couldn’t have found a better family to end up fostering her – and we hung up.

  Here is part of our wet yard this morning.  I’m so glad Lottie is home and dry.
  

  But, that’s not the end of my day . . .

  Last night, Chirper’s  owner finally returned my call.  I figured when I left a message about her caring for Lottie until the owners were found, she simply didn’t want to mess with it.   Not so.  She had been in a horseback riding accident.  Apparently, the horse bolted for the barn and she threw herself off and broke her left shoulder in several places.  Had she remained on him, the barn’s doorway would have decapitated her.  After I asked, she said she didn’t need extra help, her parents are close by, her husband is self-employed and is taking off work and some relative was coming from Florida to help.  She will require several pins in her shoulder and I think is scheduled for surgery today.  She wanted to know about Chirper and apologized for sounding “drugged” but she was on lots of pain medicine, thus the reason she hadn’t called – she had been asleep most of the day.

  I told her how well he was doing & how much weight he had gained.  Also, that he was so loved and carried around and kissed by us, that he is no longer the clingy cat we brought home at first.  I told her I take him in once a month to have his nails trimmed and to be weighed (only $4/month!!!) and how our vet commented, “I don’t know what you guys do to make your pets continually beat the odds – but don’t stop doing what you’re doing!”  We pray.  That’s all we do that, maybe, other pet owners don’t do for their pets.  It’s not “us” beating the odds – it’s God!  She was so glad to hear some GOOD NEWS and told me to call her in a month to give her another update.  She, too, said, “He couldn’t have come to a better home.”  She said her good-byes and we hung up.

  Another picture of our soggy day (soon to become MORE soggy) and Jesse’s new (but, wet) grill.
  

  
  Yesterday I cried so hard when I found that dog’s veterinarian.  I bawled loudly and my girls thought someone had died.  I was thanking God over and over again for helping me and for helping me with an ANIMAL!!!!.  I kept asking, “Lord, YOU know how to find this dog the right help.  PLEASE help me to help her.”  I can’t tell you how many vet calls I made until I finally found the right one.  I was going to quit, when I’m sure the voice of God instructed me, “NO!”  I continued forward with disappointing phone call after phone call.  After finding the dog’s vet, I cried while I got dressed, cried while we locked up the house, and was a whimpering basket case – still in shock – that this had worked out for Lottie BEFORE

  today’s rains came.
  
  

  So what did all of this teach me?  I’m forever looking for the lesson, the reason, the purpose (whatever you want to call in) when it’s an experience that only God is capable of creating a happy ending.

  Suddenly I remembered Chirper.  At some point after finding that vet in the phone book, I thought of my lack of faith and God’s capability.  My weakness, His strength.   A sick cat with a death sentence (who has been prayed for and even had healing hands laid on his body by me) who is gaining weight and overcoming physical challenge after physical challenge.  I stopped.  I learned, not to doubt that our God cares for animals, too.  He cares a lot!  If He cared about getting a dog home and had sent her to a house that would care for her and diligently try finding her owner – maybe the full impact of Chirper being sent to our pet loving home hadn’t been fully considered by me.

  Last night, Chirper’s previous owner said on the phone that she felt God had done a huge work by sending me to her house and allowing her to let go of one of her beloved pets.  This was not one of the cats she sells, but her OWN pet that she had a deep bond with and loved very much.

  I contemplated that last night and again this morning.  This is what we do best – help those in need.  Of course, that immediately brings to mind “human beings” only and my mind has never really taken our “helping and hospitality” gift any further.  But why not pets?  Why wouldn’t God send animals, that would never have a chance of surviving somewhere else, to our home? 

  FOSTER PARENTS – what does that mean AND what kind of hearts has God created in us?  Taking in the unwanted, the unlovely, the no hope people and animals in this world . . . Are we really equipped?  Or, does God intervene with each individual person/animal brought our way and equip us for that moment???

  I know we feel blessed by caring for others (and animals) and we are happy and cheerful to do so.  I need to think more about the hidden potential God has placed in me and how empowered and magnified that gift could be if I prayed more about God’s will in that area of my life.

  With that thought – I leave you and say, “HAVE A BLESSED DAY!”

  P.S.  I’m still having troubles with my computer keyboard not typing all of the letters I hit.  I’ve dropped the keyboard numerous times and all that happens is it cures an old letter problem, but then new letters cease to work.  Until I buy a more expensive keyboard, please bear with me.  I’m concentrating so hard on not leaving out or typing a wrong letters that I’m missing the obvious – like: Which witch is which?

  • 12:24 pm
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