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ENDEARING ANIMAL STORIES
I invite you to read.
Lucky Dog....
Finally the day
came for Mary to leave the hospital. When she arrived home, Mary was so
exhausted she couldn't even make it up the steps to her bedroom.
Jim made his wife comfortable on the couch and left her to nap.
Lucky stood watching Mary but he didn't come to her when she called.
It made Mary sad but sleep soon overcame her and she dozed. Because of Love
A brother and sister had made their usual hurried, obligatory pre- Christmas visit to the little farm where dwelt their elderly parents with their small herd of horses. The farm was where they had grown up and had been named Lone Pine Farm because of the huge pine, which topped the hill behind the farm. Through the years the tree had become a talisman to the old man and his wife, and a landmark in the countryside. The young siblings had fond memories of their childhood here, but the city hustle and bustle added more excitement to their lives, and called them away to a different life.
Angry, as they
prepared to leave, the young couple confronted the old folks "Why do you
not at least dispose of The Old One." She is no longer of use to you.
It's been years since you've had foals from her. You should cut corners
and save so you can have more for yourselves. How can this old worn out
horse bring you anything but expense and work? Why do you keep her
anyway?" Baffled and
irritated, the young folks wished the old man and his wife a Merry
Christmas and headed back toward the city as darkness stole through the
valley. The old couple shook their heads in sorrow that it had not been
a happy visit. A tear fell upon their cheeks. How is it that these young
folks do not understand the peace of the love that filled their hearts?
So it was, that because of the unhappy leave-taking, no one noticed the insulation smoldering on the frayed wires in the old barn. None saw the first spark fall. None but the "Old One". In a matter of minutes, the whole barn was ablaze and the hungry flames were licking at the loft full of hay. With a cry of horror and despair, the old man shouted to his wife to call for help as he raced to the barn to save their beloved horses. But the flames were roaring now, and
the blazing heat drove him back. He sank sobbing to the ground, helpless
before the fire's fury. His wife back from calling for help cradled him
in her arms, clinging to each other, they wept at their loss. By the time the fire department arrived, only smoking, glowing ruins were left, and the old man and his wife, exhausted from their grief, huddled together before the barn. They were speechless as they rose from the cold snow covered ground. They nodded thanks to the firemen as there was nothing anyone could do now. The old man turned to his wife, resting her white head upon his shoulders as his shaking old hands clumsily dried her tears with a frayed red bandana. Brokenly he whispered, "We have lost much, but God has spared our home on this eve of Christmas. Let us gather strength and climb the
hill to the old pine where we have sought comfort in times of despair.
We will look down upon our home and give thanks to God that it has been
spared and pray for our beloved most precious gifts that have been taken
from us. And so, he took her by the hand and slowly helped her up the snowy hill as he brushed aside his own tears with the back of his old and withered hand. The journey up
the hill was hard for their old bodies in the steep snow. As they
stepped over the little knoll at the crest of the hill, they paused to
rest, looking up to the top of the hill the old couple gasped and fell
to their knees in amazement at the incredible beauty before them. Seemingly, every glorious, brilliant star in the heavens was caught up in the glittering, snow-frosted branches of their beloved pine, and it was aglow with heavenly candles. And poised on its top most bough, a crystal crescent moon glistened like spun glass. Never had a mere mortal created a Christmas tree such as this. They were breathless as the old man held his wife tighter in his arms. Suddenly, the
old man gave a cry of wonder and incredible joy. Amazed and mystified,
he took his wife by the hand and pulled her forward. There, beneath the
tree, in resplendent glory, a mist hovering over and glowing in the
darkness was their Christmas gift. Shadows glistening in the night
light. Bedded down about the "Old One" close to the trunk of
the tree, was the entire herd, safe. At the first
hint of smoke, she had pushed the door ajar with her muzzle and had led
the horses through it. Slowly and with great dignity, never looking
back, she had led them up the hill, stepping cautiously through the
snow. The foals were frightened and dashed about. The skittish yearlings
looked back at the crackling, hungry flames, and tucked their tails
under them as they licked their lips and hopped like rabbits. The mares
that were in foal with a new years crop of babies, pressed uneasily
against the "Old One" as she moved calmly up the hill and to safety
beneath the pine. And now, she lay among them and gazed at the faces of
the old man and his wife. Those she loved she had not disappointed. Her
body was brittle with years, tired from the climb, but the golden eyes
were filled with devotion as she offered her gift--- Because of
love. Only Because of love.
VIDEOS
Updated 8-19-2011
This is one special bird.
Kya, submitted by Janet Wilson of North Canton, Ohio Kya joined the Wilson family during a blizzard in December 2007. "I searched our local humane society for a 'little' puppy to join our family. Kya was the largest 'puppy' in the place. She didn't know that her body was so large ... she played just like she was a tiny dog," said Janet. "I fell in love with her big droopy eyes and her enthusiasm. She has been a source of joy and comfort to our family ever since."
Selma Algur's holiday story starts with the tragedy of losing her first dog, Sabaka, to cancer. "I was truly devastated, and to ease my pain, I took a job as a volunteer at a local animal shelter while I was living in Illinois," she said. "There I met and soon fell in love with a grey tabby." The tabby cat had been dropped off at the door of the shelter in nothing but a cat carrier in the snow on the day before Christmas. Another volunteer had thought that it was merely an empty carrier and only realized that it contained an animal when he picked it up to bring it inside. "He named the cat Mistletoe, and I kept his name when I adopted him so that I could tell his story to everyone who met him. He is now a healthy and well-adjusted momma's boy who loves fresh catnip, and to have his nose rubbed. I feel truly blessed to have him in my life." "Our message to anyone who'll listen is to adopt rather than buy from a breeder, and give an older animal the second chance they need and deserve," said Selma. "My Mistletoe seemed to understand he'd be mine forever and that his days of being in shelters and cages was over. He's turned out to be one of the sweetest little guys I've had the privilege of sharing my life with."
"Reggie came to us at Christmas," said Judy Lane of Rochester, Minn. "Not under the tree in a box, but drawn to the lights of our outdoor decorating." Lane said her husband, Jack, was on a step ladder trimming their house with lights when he felt something tugging at his pant leg. When he turned to look, he discovered a small orange cat crawling up the ladder. "It was cold, and he must have been drawn to the lights," Judy said. The family posted signs throughout the neighborhood in an attempt to find the cat's owner, and when someone claimed him, the Lanes were happy to reunite the animal with his family. Then—a couple of days later—the small orange cat was back, and he was again captivated by the Christmas lights. "There he was, staring up at the lights," Judy Lane said. Again, the Lanes returned the cat to his family. And again, he returned to the Lane home. This time, his family didn't reclaim him. So for the past 10 years, Reggie has secured a spot "in" the family's Christmas tree. His favorite spot is by the tree, among the lights. Even after the Christmas tree is gone, Reggie will lay where the tree was, Judy said. Judy said, "It seems that Reggie does not see very well and it was the lights that attracted him to our home that welcomed him again and again." Bambi, submitted by Miriam Forman-Brunell of Kansas City, Mo.
On Thanksgiving in 2003, Miriam Forman-Brunell and her family headed out for a romp in the woods. "While walking along a path at the Blue River nature conservancy in Kansas City—a pristine place where hikers hike and bikers bike—we spotted an animal peering out from behind a bush. Was it a fawn? We couldn't tell," she said. The family's dog, Teddy, wagged his tail, whined and pulled them to a cautious, but curious, beige-and-brown dog. The little dog followed the family to their car and hopped in the back seat. Forman-Brunell said she believes the dog was abandoned by her owner.
"She joined us
for dinner that
night and since
then has never
left our side,"
said Forman-Brunell.
"On
Thanksgiving, we
give our thanks
for Bambi!" "I am now Bambi's seeing-eye person," she said.
Päivi Nyman was taking an evening walk with her mother and her mother's dog on Dec. 30, 2007 when the pair saw a cat scurry beneath a bush in front of Päivi's apartment building. "My mom got him. I went to my home to get a carry-cot and some food," she said. The next day, Päivi took the cat to a shelter, where he stayed for 15 days. Päivi's mother tried to keep the cat, but he was so young and was always teasing her dog. "I took him and my mom took my female cat," said Päivi. "Now everybody is happy!"
Magi, submitted
by Joann
Hunter of
Charlotte, N.C. In 1999, Joann Hunter's mother was very sick and living in Florida. "I had to go see her one last time. We both knew it would probably be her last Christmas," she said. There was limited boarding space at the veterinarian's office where Joann Hunter normally boarded her two dogs, Magi and Anna. "I reluctantly boarded them elsewhere," she said. "After I returned home, I went to pick Anna and Magi up from the boarder's. They said Anna was there but Magi was gone." Joann said she asked why she wasn't called when Magi escaped, but she received no answer. "They said she bit through her leash and got away," she said. Joann took Anna home and went to look for Magi. "I was working two jobs at the time, so my looking-time was limited. My mother died in February, and up until the day she went into the hospital the last time, my mother called every day asking if I had found Magi yet," she said. Joann Hunter said she posted posters and lost-dog ads before asking a pet detective for help. After five weeks and 54 leads, a couple called and said they found a dog matching Magi's description hiding in the woods by their house. "They called animal control, but they could not catch her," she said. "She was only a year old, and it her first time away from me and her sister. The couple said Magi would listen to cars in the neighborhood, come out of the woods, look and go back." Joann Hunter took Anna, hoping the dogs would pick up each other's scent. The next day, she got a call saying Magi came out of the woods. Joann went back and Magi ran and jumped into her arms. "We sat there at the end of their driveway, me holding her and crying tears of joy," she said. "Anna and Magi are approaching their 11th birthday. I believe my mother is smiling down from heaven Chaplin, submitted by Nina Cordova-Ami of St. Augustine, Fla. It was two weeks before Christmas, nine years ago, in Atlanta, Ga. Nina Cordova-Ami had another adopted dog, Maxfield, who she took for a walk in the nature trail provided by her condo association.
"For several
days, I had seen
a small,
scraggly dog
wandering around
the nature
walk," she said.
"This one
particular day,
as I was walking
Maxfield, I ran
into my
neighbor. She
said to me, 'You
know that little
brown dog that
has been
wandering
around? Well, I
saw him this
morning,
cowering under a
tree, and he was
covered with
frost.' Finally, Nina got him to approach her when she had food in her hand. She scratched his chin and the dog jumped into her lap, knocked her down and started licking her face.
"It was instant
chemistry. I
picked him up
and took him
home. He weighed
all of 11
pounds. I could
see his ribs, he
was so skinny.
After lifting
his leg on most
of my furniture
(I followed,
cleaning up
after him), I
gave him a bath,
introduced him
to Maxfield, and
they became fast
friends. I named
him 'Charlie
Chaplin, the
Little Tramp'
and Chaplin for
short. When I
took him to the
vet, she said he
was around four
or five years
old."
"All the years
of abuse he
experienced has
made him wary of
strangers, but
he is totally
devoted to me.
He sleeps next
to my pillow and
is jealous when
my other adopted
dog, Baxter, a
Tibetan Terrier,
approaches me.
He needs a lot
of attention and
care, which I of
course provide." Cookie, submitted by Sharon Girouard of Old Town, Maine Two-and-a-half years ago, Sharon Girouard adopted a cat, Cookie, from the local humane society. Cookie was 12 weeks old when she went to her new home in July 2006. "The following Christmas, I had put together an artificial Christmas tree in my kitchen. Cookie climbed onto it checking out the branches." Sharon decided that she wanted the tree in the living room instead of the kitchen, but wasn't about to take the entire tree apart again. "I coaxed a very playful Cookie out of the tree—or so I thought—so I could carry it to the living room. I lifted the tree and tilted it forward to get it through the entranceway. I finally got it into the living room and stood the tree upright, fixing the branches. I then discovered my Cookie still clinging to the inner pole of the tree!"
"She made me
laugh! Christmas
with Cookie was
very merry."
On Dec. 20, 2007, Connie Connor received a phone call from her brother about some puppies. "He was on a delivery in a pretty bad area in Philadelphia and saw some dogs living outside of someone's house," she said. Her brother asked around about the dogs and found out that they were never fed, there was no water and the dogs lived outside year-round. A worker told her brother that he fed the dogs when he could or would give them his lunch. "My brother walked over and tried to get a better look and saw four little puppies hiding. He called me, and we decided that something had to be done! We went to the store and bought a huge bag of food and took it down to them," she said. Connie said they knocked and tried to speak to the owners, but no one would answer. "We then went back to the workers and asked them to put us in touch with the owner; he called us with a phone number and we called the owner and asked about the pups. She told us we could come get them on Dec. 22. We called her on the 22nd and she wouldn't answer, so we drove down there (with another bag of food) and the puppies were so hungry that they tried to dig under the fencing and got out." When Connie and her brother went to get the dogs, the owner said they would cost $20 each. Connie handed her $80 and took all four pups. "I brought all four pups home and found them homes within a day. There were two boys and two girls who were estimated at about four weeks old. We took them to the vet and found that they had a bad flea issue, a horrible worm issue, and giardia," she said. They all have homes now with members of Connie's family. Her cousin has the two girls—Lucky and Ruby—and another cousin has one boy, Cody. Connie took the other boy, Gunner. They celebrated their first birthday Nov. 22 and the dogs get together at least once a month for play dates.
"I hope everyone
else can help
out unfortunate
dogs, and please
don't buy from a
pet store,"
Connie said.
"Find a dog that
has a bad
situation and
make it a good
one." Chrissy, submitted by Anne Zachritz "We were driving home early on a very, very cold Christmas morning last year (2007). As we passed through downtown Oklahoma City, we saw a little puppy in front of a bank, trying to warm up over a storm sewer. She didn't have a collar on and there were no 'missing puppy' signs posted," said Anne Zachritz. "She was scared but was so cold that she seemed to trust us right away and let me pick her up and put her in my lap. The family found a veterinarian who was open on Christmas day, and ensured the dog received her shots and medical treatment.
The family
tried to find a
home for her,
but decided to
keep her. "Plus,
we fell madly in
love with her at
first sight,"
Anne said. "She
was about three
months old
(maybe) when we
found her. She
has been an
absolute joy and
has given our
old dogs a lot
of energy! We
named her
Chrissy (short
for 'Christmas
Puppy')." Puppy Size
This is one of the neatest stories you will ever hear. You will know precisely what this little girl is talking about at the end (you'll want to share this one with your loved ones and special friends)!
'Well, we have plenty of puppies, if that's what she's looking for.' 'I know... we have seen most of them,' the mom said in frustration...
The two women looked at each other, shook their heads and laughed 'You never know when we will get more dogs. Unfortunately, there's always a supply,' the volunteer said. Danielle took her mother by the hand and headed to the door. 'Don't worry, I'll find one this weekend,' she said. Over the next few days both Mom and Dad had long conversations with her; they both felt she was being too particular. 'It's this weekend or we're not looking any more,' Dad finally said in frustration.
'We don't want to hear anything more about puppy size, either,' Mom added. Sure enough, they were the first ones in the shelter on Saturday morning. By now Danielle knew her way around, so she ran right for the section that housed the smaller dogs. Tired of the routine, mom sat in the small waiting room at the end of the first row of cages. There was an observation window so you could see the animals during times when visitors weren't permitted.
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