Nanny: Fifteen puppies!
Nanny: Fourteen. Just fourteen. We lost one.
Rodger: And yet. And yet I wonder.
Rodger: Fifteen! We still have fifteen!”
101 Dalmatians
First, there were two. Then five. Before the day was over, we had seven little German Shepherd puppies. Lola was doing perfectly. All was quiet as she took good care of her first litter.
As the sixth puppy arrived earlier that day, I noticed it was not breathing. Chuck and I looked down, and without thinking, I grabbed the little puppy and gently pressed her little chest with my finger. “Ok, the information here says you can now go ahead with mouth-to-mouth,” Chuck said slyly. I replied, “If that is the only way to save this pup, you need to go ahead and dig the grave because that will not happen!” I began to rub its back, and in just a few minutes, the little pup coughed up the problem and began to breathe on its own.” I gently tucked her back beside Lola, and she did the rest. The girls were so excited that I had saved the little pup they immediately named her Cutie.” Girls, she is not staying. You need to know that. We are overrun with dogs as it is. NO.”
A few days went by while Lola met their every need and remained close by their side. I was busy tending to things inside the house and running the kids outside to play. She would come with us for a few minutes, then quickly head back to her litter. Later that day, knee-deep in work, I walked out to the garage to check on her. She gave me a look of longing. I smiled and sat down beside her. “It’s ok, girl. I got time.” She laid her head down, soaked in the much-needed attention, and rested. All was quiet and restful as I stroked her. If I had known it would be the last time we would spend together, I would have stayed longer.
There was no warning, no sign of complications. She fed all the pups one last time, cleaned them thoroughly, stepped out of the box, and laid down to draw her last breath.
Own this growing keepsake collection today!
Available locally at the Book Inn, Heaven’s Nectar, and Fayetteville Mainstreet!
or on Amazon!
Or own personally from me (signed and shipped!)
I had been out riding horses with a friend of mine. I was met with sad little girls when I pulled into the driveway. Through alligator tears, they hung on to me. I held them close while Tyson sat in his stroller, and Chuck moved Lola away. Catching her breath, Eva said, “God told me to go check her.” I looked down with a questioning look, and she explained. “We were in the living room playing cards with Daddy, and I heard God whisper in my heart. I saw she wasn’t moving and ran to get Daddy.”
It’s not ideal to find your dog lying dead, but if I can teach my kids that God shows up in the good and bad times, that becomes an outcome I can live with. Through my sadness, I said, “Girls, I know it’s hard. But God always makes good. Somehow, he makes the sunshine peak through the clouds, and He will do it this time, too.”
In his boots, hauling the wheelbarrow, he stopped. “I don’t like this situation any more than you do, but we do not have time. We have seven puppies lying there that are going to need milk soon. They are two days old; the odds are not good. Are you with me or not?” I dried my tears and informed him we were all with him.
We had friends who had bottle-fed puppies before. They told us everything we would need: “Just get the puppies through the night. Then tackle tomorrow when it gets here.” I recited this to myself many times while cleaning and feeding.
“Why! Why does it always have to be so hard?! Why can’t some things come together easily? Why do I have to dig for everything only to come up empty!” In his very calm way, my father said, “Stop looking for the bad and find the good. He is making a better you. Think of all the ranchers who lose cattle during cold winters or the farmers who lose their crops for lack of rain. It’s the risk you take, yet it often brings rich rewards.”
The lack of a sign does not mean the lack of assignment. We don’t follow signs. They follow us. Mark 16:17
– Jim Stockdale
Knee-deep in cotton balls and latex gloves cleaning puppies, our twelfth anniversary found us sleepy. Still making formula bottles for Tyson and now making bottles for puppies, it became essential to keep the two separate. You can see where this could get hairy (no pun intended).
Although it was his spaghetti and hidden princely charm that stole my heart, the mud boots and the loving aid he gave me at three o’clock in the morning solidified more than just the good times. I told him, “If I could go back and do it all again, I would have married you sooner so I could love you longer.”
Watching my kids bottle-feed puppies is teaching them more than struggle. It is teaching strength. These are the elements that seal and define a family. Family footprints become cemented through time as you work together on the assignment at hand.
Don’t deny the hard parts because that’s just the kind of place God likes to show up.
Making our way down the path in the woods that winds along the creek, we arrived to say goodbye to Lola. Everyone was in attendance at the creek-side funeral that morning, even Penny, Lola’s constant rival. Adding some rocks to her grave that she loved so much, we said a few mindful words, and I dried some tears from little eyes. I hope my kids remember we always had time for what mattered to them.
Feeding the puppies that night, Chuck noticed little Cutie. He commented, “Look at her markings and face.” I was pleasantly surprised; of all the dogs, she was the only one who looked exactly like Lola. I grabbed the kids and encouraged them, “Although Lola had to go away, she left us a gift. God always makes good. Welcome home, Cutie.
Their young ones become strong; they grow up in the open; they go out and do not return to them. Job 39:4
