April… and How She Helped to Heal a Broken Heart

I guess most everyone who takes the time to visit my website has been affected in some positive way by an animal during his or her life. I know for myself that has been the case many times over, and it is one of the reasons I chose to pursue the career I did.

There is something so special and sacred about the human-animal bond. The relationship is one that transcends words and customs, existing instead in some higher realm. Our pets provide us unconditional love, elicit smiles with their antics, sit watch at our bedsides when we are ill, keep guard over our homes and our children, are known antidotes to stress, and can be our most loyal companions.

I was reminded of how important the companionship of a beloved pet is by a recent interaction I had with one of my clients who I will refer to as Mrs. Smith. Mrs. Smith is a senior who has been living on her own for a number of years now. She is originally from the Bronx, is a cancer survivor, and as long as I have known her one tough cookie. Lately though I could see she was having a bit of a tough time. Ailments that she had been living with for years were starting to really flair up, her mood was down, and she seemed to be feeling a bit lost. She left a voice-mail two weeks ago that explained it all- she missed her beloved feline companion (who I’ll call Kitty) that she had lost to cancer a few months prior. She joked that the home was actually Kitty’s and she just allowed her to live in it with her. She longed for another companion but wasn’t able to drive and had no internet so therefore had no easy means of searching the shelters. After the conversation was over it was clear that something needed to be done and so I began my mission to find Mrs. Smith the perfect feline companion. To make a long story a bit shorter, Mrs. Smith wasn’t the only one in need of an intervention. Animal control took in a stray cat from an area of known feral (wild/unsocialized to people) colonies. After a few days of letting her adjust we happily found that she wasn’t feral at all and in fact had a very sweet disposition. After a meet and greet (best first date EVER :) a new family was created.

Today I personally delivered Mrs. Smith’s new kitty (who she named April) to her home. I found it very telling that when I asked Mrs. Smith how she was feeling today she replied, “GREAT!” Wish I could take the credit for this miraculous transformation but the credit goes to you April :)