Howard the Angel....Cat

This last week, I took our sweet Sheltie, Betty, to the vet.  She's 15 now, and suffering a host of ailments. We'd found a suspicious lump and wanted the vet to take a look.  She did a needle biopsy on the lump, and left the exam room to look at it under the microscope.

Dr. W. hadn't been gone very long till Howard, the office cat, strolled into the room.   Betty has never been a fan of cats, but she was strangely calm as Howard approached and sniffed her paw.  He gently laid his paw on her, looked deeply into her eyes, then waited in the room until the the doctor came back.

Yes, it looked to be malignant, and the treatment of choice - were it not for her failing health overall - was surgery.  We left the office and Kenny and I talked it over.  We decided that Betty had been through enough in her long life, and we wanted her to enjoy her last days in peace.

On Tuesday, I returned to the vet's office to pick up some pain meds so that our old girl would be comfortable.  Howard was leaving the reception area when I came in, but as soon as I started to speak, he turned around to see me.  Jumping up on the counter, he sat and looked into my eyes, not blinking, then laid down in front of me to be petted.

"We call him our angel cat," Dr. W. told me.  Apparently, Howard "knows" when animals need a little encouragement.  He sits with animals coming out of anesthesia, and comforts them as they wake up.  He also sits with animals who are being euthanized, laying next to them as long as he is allowed.

Howard the angel cat.   His gift reminds me that there are angels all around us, and they often are there when and where we least expect to see them.




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