Early last Saturday morning, my husband and I said goodbye to Reese, our beloved black labrador mix. She was almost eleven years old. We adopted her when rescued by our veterinarian’s assistant at six weeks old. Reese had the saddest eyes, and we treated her with all the love we had and gave her a secure and happy life.

Earlier that afternoon, we took Reese, her twin sister, Hershey, and Nestley, a Chocolate Labrador-German Wire Hair mix with us across the state. When we arrived at my sister’s home, Reese seemed fine, but within an hour she just wanted to lie down and not move. After a while we noticed heavy breathing and white inside her mouth.  When her breathing  worsened, I called a veterinarian and took her to the office for an examination.

No improvement occurred after an hour or so of procedures by the vet. The x-rays showed Reese’s liver or spleen enlarged and pushed her rib cage and heart into an elongated position, and her intestines shoved into a straight line across her backbone. Due to her age, stress level, and a 30-50% chance of recovery if operated on, we chose to put her down.

My husband and I held her and told her how lucky we were to raise her and enjoy her so much for these past years,  We prayed and asked the Lord if he would to restore her in heaven to see again when our turn arrived to join Him. Reese calmly and peacefully drifted off in our arms at 1:30 am, Saturday, March 3. The vet cried with us and said her remains would be ready later that day. When we paid the bill and picked up Reese’s ashes, the vet saw us and came over, hugged us and offered her condolences again.

In all our sorrow, the Lord reached out and cared for us.  He provided us with a person who cared for Reese as if she knew her. She was gentle as she attempted to determine Reese’s problem, and she answered our questions honestly. Her compassion toward us and Reese was amazing since we never met before that morning. Owen and I both believe the Lord placed her in our path to aid us in a most critical and sorrowful matter.

Have you ever experienced the same type of blessing in a horrible situation?  Please share it with me. I would appreciate it very much. Thank you for visiting my site.