Thursday, June 6, 2013

An unforgettable true story of a grieving dog's gift to her buddy in heaven.


http://www.guideposts.org/inspiration/angels-on-earth/a-final-offering-to-a-furry-friend?utm_source=Angels-on-Earth&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2013-6-5_nl_a-final-offering-to-a-furry-friend

 

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A Final Offering to a Furry Friend

An unforgettable true story of a grieving dog's gift to her buddy in heaven.
By Theresa Olive
WEB EXCLUSIVE



Several years ago, our family rented a house that had a basement apartment under ours. The young couple who lived below us were quiet and unobtrusive. Their dog, however, was not.
Cody was a typical black lab; a big, tail thumping extrovert. He loved to greet us by planting his huge paws on our chest. Our dog Tasha, an English Setter mix, was a kindred spirit. Because she shared the yard with Cody, they soon became fast friends.
We often saw a blur of black and white fur as they raced neck and neck toward some hapless bird that had just landed in their territory. The only time I saw any conflict between the two dogs was when we fed Tasha. Cody would bound up, expecting to share in Tasha’s bounty. However, Tasha would bare her teeth and growl menacingly.
Cody would change his strategy, dropping to his belly and inching slowly toward Tasha’s dish. But this ingratiating behavior did not impress Tasha. The closer Cody got, the more Tasha snarled and snapped. Finally, Cody would slink away with his tail between his legs—until next mealtime, that is. Then Cody, ever the optimist, would replay the scene, with the same disappointing conclusion.

One day my husband Jeff came home visibly upset. He had just found Cody lying by the side of the road, killed by a speeding truck. Tasha sniffed at Cody’s glossy black fur and whined. Over the next few weeks, Tasha was listless, her tail drooping. She obviously missed her old friend.
At the same time, Tasha’s food dish disappeared. We replaced it with another, only to have that one vanish as well. There followed a steady succession of bowls, aluminum plates, even an old coffee can. They all disappeared. Finally, the mystery was solved when our neighbor knocked on our door, her arms loaded with the missing dishes, some still half-full of dog food.
"Are these yours?" she asked.  When Jeff and I nodded, she explained, "I saw Tasha headed toward the road, so I shooed her back. Then I noticed all these dishes in a pile."
Puzzled, I asked, "Where were they?"
"Well, you know," she answered thoughtfully, "it was right by the place where Cody died. Isn’t that odd? Surely Tasha couldn’t..." Her voice trailed off in confusion.
Jeff and I exchanged glances. Could Tasha have been enticing her old friend back by offering him the one thing she withheld from him when he was alive? 

Even today, retelling the story gives me goose bumps. It raises questions about animals’ intelligence and emotions.


It also reminds me not to wait to show love to those around me. I need to share whatever blessings I’ve received with others—before it’s too late.

2 comments:

Watchful said...

I have a Cody and this story brought a tear to my eye. Thanks John.

Anonymous said...

How funny! I have a Cody too, only his name is Rocco, I adopted him a couple of years ago, we already had Chile an intelligent and independent girl. Rocco is so in love with Chile but she will have nothing to do with him, until meal time that is, she will then be sweet an loving to him so she can eat his food and once she is finish Rocco will try to be playfull with her but by then she is full, his plate is empty and she will go back to grawl and kick him to the curve. Because Rocco is all black and a 75 pound Pitbull is funny to see how a little Rodeshian girl can play him like that. But they are good friends and when the groomer comes to give them a bath, one waits for the other, I walk them almost every day and when Rocco does something he is not supposed to do Chile waits patiently for him to be corrected and if I scold him that is the only time she is sweet to him, she rubs her neck on his and kisses his head, it is really amazing to watch. This story really touched my hearth, i am sure Cody is in heaven waiting for Tasha to show up.