In April, I had the pleasure of reading Marjorie’s blogs about pet loss. I knew I would be facing it at some point, so I was curious to see her perspective. Little did I know that within a month, I would be experiencing the loss of a pet, which is what inspired me to write this guest blog. Here’s my story, and I hope it helps you find healing if you’re experiencing this, too.
In August of 2022, I decided it was time for me to adopt a dog. Long story short, I had been working on some self-healing for about 3 years and for once I was alone and felt that I could love something now that I learned to love myself. Looking back, those who are close to me would say, “who rescued who?”While I’ve heard many people say this before, they weren’t kidding. “Buddy”, an adorable beagle mix, was on his second time at the Frederick County Animal Control Shelter, and I just couldn’t understand why anyone would give him up, especially when he had a heart murmur. Knowing that he was viewed as a “misfit” hurt my heart even more. Him being there didn’t make any sense to me at all – other than it was so that I could love on him.
Buddy’s First Months In His Furever Home
When I adopted Buddy, I was a bit nervous. I hadn’t had a dog since being a kid and I was in my mid-30s at the time. While nervous, I couldn’t have been more sure that he was for me when I had him. He was sweet as can be, quiet as ever, house-trained, didn’t need a crate, could care less about other people and really just wanted to be around me. He was the perfect dog for me with where I was in life. Buddy was laid back. He had a playful side and was smart as ever but I never wanted to overexert him because I knew he had a murmur and with the little medical knowledge I have, I knew getting him all worked up could be harmful to him. So Buddy and I became best friends and just palled around and took it easy. My friends grew to love him and learned quickly what I meant when I’d say, “I’m really not biased, he is the best dog ever!”. We would go to cookouts and all kinds of things together. He was my road dog!
Understanding Buddy’s Health
When I first adopted Buddy, I got thim established with Dr. Ahalt at Jefferson Veterinary Care. He was a long-time friend of my stepdad, and I knew he would take good care of Buddy and be honest with me about anything going on. During our first visit, he made sure that I knew he had a murmur and informed me that it was at a 3 out of 5 but not a “strong” 3. He said we should keep an eye on him and stay aware of any changes in behaviors or symptoms. He told me to watch out for things like heavy breathing, gagging when drinking, and being lethargic. Other than that, I could bring him back for a year check-up.
Buddy and I Tried This Animal Communication Thing
I felt good about Buddy’s physical health at the time but not his mental health. My apartment had a fireplace and when I would light the fire, Buddy would literally climb on top of my head and shake like a leaf. He was scared to death. He also wouldn’t walk on a certain area of the grass when I would take him outside. I had gotten familiar with Marjorie’s services and decided to give her a try to see if I could figure out what was going on with him. My first consultation with her was the best 20 minutes! She was compassionate, kind, and very intuitive. I didn’t really know what to expect since, before her, I didn’t even know that animal communication was a thing. She explained to me that with the fire, Buddy had possibly witnessed a large fire with a lot of chaos, so it gave him bad anxiety. With the area he wouldn’t walk in, she sensed that something was covering the ground that he didn’t like the smell of. Well, pine needles had covered that area, and it was so pungent that it turned Buddy off. It was fascinating to hear these things! I simply stopped taking him to that area, and as far as the fire went, Marjorie gave me some tips.
To help acclimate Buddy to fire, Marjorie suggested that I put a fireplace screensaver on my TV since it was mounted above the fireplace. As I got him used to the site and noise, she recommended that I put some ash near his food and water bowl since he associated those two things with pleasure/happiness. Once he got used to that, she suggested I start a small fire with half of a log and then build it from there. I gradually did all of these things, and it worked! Buddy was no longer scared of the fire.
Another tip that she gave me to help with his anxiety when I left him was to look at him and then envision me leaving and coming back happily, greeting him. I used to do this, and it worked like a charm. She told me that dogs have no concept of time, so no matter how long I was gone, this trick would work and give him reassurance that I was coming back.
Using Marjorie to communicate with Buddy really enhanced my care for him. Little did I know, I would need her more than ever in the upcoming months. Stay tuned for Part 2.
