Instead of the usual letter, I wanted to share a recent experience I had working with a pet owner (all identifying details have been changed to protect privacy). I share this because it really hits at the very heart of why I do what I do.
I was contacted for a reading by Sheila, a cat owner who had recently lost her much-loved feline quite unexpectedly. Sheila was struggling with many emotions but was quick to tell me that she had not yet even been able to cry or grieve because of the guilt and questions that plagued her.
She had recently gone on vacation. Like many pet owners, she hired a competent and trust-worthy pet sitter to care for her kitty while she was gone. She had used this woman on a number of other occasions and knew her to be faithful in the care of Domino, her cat. While Sheila was out-of-town, her sitter called her to give her the sad news. She had fed 8-year-old Domino that morning, but upon her return to feed that evening, she found him deceased.
Sheila was distraught. Domino had no known health issues; in fact, he was the picture of health. Sheila’s first fear was that she had inadvertently given her furry friend tainted food.
Sheila was distraught. Domino had no known health issues; in fact, he was the picture of health. Sheila’s first fear was that she had inadvertently given her furry friend tainted food. The recent number of pet food recalls of her brand of food had her up at night. She decided to have an autopsy performed, hoping it might give her some closure. After several weeks and hundreds of dollars, she was informed that they could find no conclusive reason as to why Domino had died.
As she shared her distress, Domino began to come through with images detailing what had happened to him. I relayed to his owner that an artery near his ear had an embolism. Unlike the overwhelming majority of embolisms I see, this one did not “blow” like Krakatoa. What I saw instead, was a tiny tear on the lower outside portion of the embolism that caused blood to leak out into the chest cavity. He bled to death internally.
Unable to mask her surprise, she cried. She then told me that she had lost her sister a number of years earlier to the exact same problem. Shortly after her sister had passed, Sheila had a vivid dream in which her sister told her about a male cat named Georgie. She had already contacted a breeder before the dream with plans to adopt a female, but when she went to see the litter, it was the male who caught her eye. The breeder casually informed her that this kitten had been named Georgie. Needless to say, Sheila brought home the cat that her sister had selected for her.
Georgie was a Tomcat, and she had plans for using him in her line of champion cats. Of the many kittens he produced, Sheila kept several, the youngest of which was Domino. Over the years Georgie had passed on, as had Domino’s older siblings, Domino was the last link to the dream with her sister.
Sheila was overwhelmed with emotion by the hand her sister had played in her closest companions; from selecting the best, to escorting the last of them to spirit, in the same fashion in which she had gone.
The gift of my work is that I am allowed to be a witness to the inner-most parts of peoples’ lives. Let’s face it, if you read my newsletter, you love your animals. When we lose one of our babies, it cuts deep. We grieve them like we grieve our two-legged family. I am continuously humbled to be able to stand with someone as they walk that painful journey of passing and grief.
When we finished our session, Sheila gave me a huge hug. She told me that she felt she could now finally grieve and had closure and peace surrounding the circumstances of Domino’s death.
I count my blessings that by doing something I love, someone’s burden was lightened, even if only for a while. Thank you to all of you who have allowed me into your and your pets’ lives.
