The Bonds of Love

You have probably heard of people who had been married for 50+ years and when one of them passes away, the other spouse passes very soon after . . . because they don't want to be without each other.   I witnessed something similar this past week with two of my animal clients - two precious Rottweilers named Buster and Mia - and while it is heartbreaking to lose them both in a six day period, I can't help but be deeply touched that Mia wanted to be with her brother so much that she left so soon after him.

I first met their mom Tina about seven years ago when she asked me to come see her Rottweiler Jewel.  At the time, Tina had four Rottweilers, Jewel and her mate Guy, and two of their puppies, Buster and Mia.  Over the last seven years, they have become like family to me.  I adored each one of them and enjoyed their sweet and varied personalities.  Over the years, I have probably become more attached to them than any client I have ever had.

In March of 2010, Jewel made her transition and a little less than two years later, Guy made his transition.  For the last couple years, it's just been Tina and "the Monsters" (Tina's nickname for Buster and Mia).  The two of them have always been the closest of any siblings I have ever seen.  They always wanted to be next to each other.  I called them "the book ends" because they would often lay right up next to each other with their backs touching.  They didn't seem happy unless they were right next to each other.  Even in recent months when their mobility was compromised, they could still manage to scoot around so they could be next to one another.

In typical sibling fashion, Mia did occasionally get grumpy if she thought Buster was getting too much attention.  Consequently, if I was coming over to do a Reiki treatment on Buster, we made sure Mia got some Reiki too so that she wouldn't feel left out.   They couldn't have been more different, personality wise.  Mia was the more serious one. She thought it was her job to take care of her mom (Tina) and protect her.  Buster was the goofy one.  He thought it was his job to make his mom laugh and he always made an effort to be a goof so that he could see her smile.


They celebrated their 14th birthdays this August and while we knew they were getting up there in age, I don't think either of us was ready for them to go.  Last Thursday, Buster passed away in Tina's arms. We knew it was coming but it didn't make it any easier.  Mia was really sad about losing her brother so on Sunday I went over to give her a Reiki treatment. The second I put my hands on her, I felt her grief well up inside me, her sadness was so intense.  I asked the energy to help her release some of that grief but in the following days, Tina told me she could still tell how sad Mia was.  One of the pieces of guidance I got for them before I left on Sunday was for Tina to do something special with Mia, whether it was watching a movie, or reading something to her, I just got a strong sense that they needed to do something together that was different and special.

And interestingly enough, just last night, Tina texted me to tell me that she and Mia had watched videos of Buster and Mia together and that Mia had been smiling the whole time . . . for the first time in days.  We were so happy that Mia finally seemed less sad.  When I got up this morning, there was another text from Tina telling me that Mia had passed away during the night.  The only explanation that makes sense is that she wanted to be with Buster - that regardless of how much she loved Tina, she needed to be with her brother.

My heart is very heavy for Tina right now.  She hadn't even had time to process her grief over losing Buster and now Mia is gone too.  She knows they are still around her, as are Jewel and Guy, and she is a very strong lady, so I know she will be OK, but it doesn't stop my heart from aching for her.  If you feel inclined, I would be grateful if you would take a moment to send some love Tina's way.

Final Words of Wisdom

In my work with animals, I often am given the opportunity to be present in their final hours - to offer energy to soothe them and to help assist them in sharing their important messages with their family members. While it makes my heart heavy to experience the grief with their guardians, I also find it an honor to be a part of this sacred part of an animal's journey.

I continue to be in awe of the messages that I am asked to share . . . messages that touch their guardian's hearts and leave them with comfort, insights and inspiration.

There was one dog in particular who stands out in my mind because I had only met his parents a couple other times before that day.  When I got there to give Max a final reiki treatment, they all assembled on the floor of the master bedroom . . . mom and dad and their three children were all there.  Max had messages for everyone - and they were things I couldn't possibly have known.

He asked the kids to help out more around the house and help take the burden off of mom.  He asked that they talk to each other more kindly, starting sentences with "Can you please  . . . " (take out the garbage, empty the dishwasher, etc).  Max's mom tearfully told me afterwards that every one of Max's requests made perfect sense to her.  There was no doubt in her mind that what she was hearing was coming directly from Max.

Just the other week, a precious cat named Poppy was ready to make her transition.  One of the messages she had for her parents was that she knew they had different ways of processing their grief and she asked if they would be supportive of each other and honor each other's needs in the weeks that followed.  Her parents seemed to know exactly what she was talking about, admitting that they did have different ways of processing emotion and they promised their sweet Poppy that they would do as she requested.

I have had the honor of delivering hundreds of these types of messages for animals before they made their transitions and I feel so blessed to be able to assist them in this way.  They are so much more than "pets" . . . they are our guardians . . . they come into our lives to help us and the commitment they have to their guardians is ever-present, right up until the very end.