Botticello Farms

Today I had to bring my cat to the vet. This past week she has been squinting in one eye.  I finally saw a huge scratch across her eye this morning & needed to bring her to get the eye looked at before she lost her vision. 

I really don’t like going to the vet on Saturdays because the wait is alway sooo… long. Today was no exception.  They told me they had an opening at 9:45 & I was there.  

 The room was full, and I mean full-standing room only. All dogs. One cat, mine. Now, I don’t know if you have ever observed the pets in a Vets’ waiting room, but I have to tell you that if you have an extra hour on a Saturday morning it is really something to see.  One little snauzzer hiding under the bench, obviously believing that if no one saw him he would be safe.  Another, a huge newfoundland, trying to climb in his “moms” lap. Then when the vet called him in-he laid down on the floor and refused to walk into the examining area, he actually had to be dragged in.  These guys (our pets) know what is going on, and no way are they going along with it.  It is amazing how you finally realize how much like us they truly are. Well, after only an hour wait the vet called me in. He found the scratch treated it-gave me a perscription & sent me out to pay my bill.  The good news was she didn’t scratch the cornea-only the lens, which is bad enough but at least it will heal with no lasting repercussions. After about a 20 minute wait I got to pay my bill-which was a reasonable amount.

It was when I was walking back to my car that I cried.  There was a whole family in the parking lot who had just had to put down their beloved dog.  I don’t know if he had suffered trauma from a car accident, or if he was old and suffering-luckily I had escaped viewing that part of this sad tragedy.  The pets whole family was there and they were sobbing & hugging each other.  Witnessing the tremendous pain they were experiencing moved me beyond words.  I immediatly shared the pain they were feeling. I expressed my sorrow at their loss & got in my car and hugged my cat. Thankful that she is ok and will be with me many more years. But I cried all the way home because, even though I didn’t know this family, I too have felt the enormous pain of losing a beloved friend and pet. It feels as if someone reached their hand into your chest and ripped your heart out, leaving only a gaping bleeding hole that actually hurts-physically. It can take quite a long time before you can learn to live with that pain.  I don’t believe you “get over” loss, instead I believe you learn to live with the pain.  And, every now & then it washes over you again bringing you back to your fresh grief.

Pets bring out the human-ness in us.  They give us unconditional love and acceptance. They bring us together as people.  Think about it-when you want to strike up a conversation with most people if you mention your pet you gain an immediate response. Either a sharing of pet stories, or a display of repulsion…,”you have a cat(dog, hamster, fish…), I HATE cats(dogs, hamsters, fish…)!” And the discussion goes on from there.

Many people try to downplay a pets death. They feel they are “stupid” to be grieving so hard-or they don’t discuss their loss for fear of being looked at strangly. They are afraid that others will say ”Imagine so totally devestated by a pets loss, what a nutcase.” Well, I for one grieve hard and long when I lose a family member and whether they are standing on two legs or four doesn’t diminish my loss at all.  Acknowledging someones loss with a sympathy card or just a simple, “I am sorry about your loss” means so much to the people experiencing the trauma of grief. And it brings us closer together, reminding us that we all eventually live, love and die.

To the family who returned their beloved pet to God and his angels this weekend, “I am so sorry for your loss-I too have been there and share your pain-hopefully by knowing others grieve with you eases your burden, somehow.