A Tail Of Hope

I have always believed animals have so much to teach us.  It’s why I chose the profession I’m in of course.  But I am still sometimes amazed at how it can transpire.   This week was no exception and this is a little off the beaten path for a Dreamwinds post to be honest.  But I’m compelled to write about it because it has had such an impact on my entire week.   It’s about a dog…

For those who don’t know, in addition to my horse “addiction”, I also have a profound love for Shelties (Shetland Sheepdogs).   They are extremely intelligent, like little furry humans…only possibly smarter. 🙂   I do a lot of business through social media, but I also connect with friends and occasionally feed my Sheltie obsession through a FB page called Sheltie Owners.   It is a group of about 10K people who share my love for the breed and pepper my newsfeed with beautiful photos and stories of their gorgeous pups.   There is one particular member, Kathy, who would share the antics of her sable sheltie, Agnus Ann every day…sometimes twice a day.  She had a deep love and connection with Agnus Ann and you couldn’t help but stop to read about their adventures and smile.

This week, I saw the post from Kathy sharing that Agnus Ann had been struck by a car and killed instantly while she walked her on a leash.  Group members share their losses daily on this page and the group shares their grief.  This was nothing new.  But when I read this post, I’ll admit I actually cried.   I cried for the loss of a beautiful dog with a big personality and I cried for the incredible pain that I could only imagine Kathy must be experiencing.   And I was taken aback by this to be honest.   I’ve always been a bit of a softy, but here I was heartbroken over a dog and an owner whom I had never met.

What happened next was nothing short of extraordinary…my newsfeed lit up.  Every single post that evening was people expressing the same deep sadness that I had experienced.  People from all over the world, who had enjoyed following the adventures of Agnus Ann, poured in their condolences, started Go Fund Me accounts, a Tribute Page and donated to rescues…all in the name of this sweet little dog and her owner.  All desperate to do something, anything to ease the pain of someone most knew only through the internet.  What had started as so heart-wrenching, suddenly became incredibly heartwarming.

Within 24 hours, what seemed like thousands of people from around the world, of different faith, race, religion and political views united for the love of a dog and her devastated owner.   They united with a common goal to ease suffering, to bring some light into a darkened world.   And I was struck by it.  Struck by what could happen when people put aside their differences.  Struck by the idea that this little fluffy dog could open so many hearts in a time when world events are closing so many minds.

And it gave me hope and I just had to share…

R.I.P. Agnus Ann xo