This is a lovely story from Visiting Nurse. It came from someone who gave a patient's dog a new forever home.
This person recently lost a beloved pet and was in search of a new companion. Nellie is a 9-year-old Chihuahua mix who was missing several teeth. Nellie's original owner was still alive but had grown too sick to care for her. She went to live with the new pet mom, and the new pet mom brought Nellie to visit her previous owner before he passed away. Nellie ran up to the couch and tried to sit on his lap and lick him but he was too weak to hold his legs up. Nellie's new mom put a chair next to his wheelchair and put Nellie on her lap so he could pet her. He kept saying she was his “Nellie girl” and pet her as much as he could. He was very weak and not able to stay awake the whole visit, but he and his son were both very thankful that she brought Nellie for one last visit.
Nellie's new mom was suffering from the isolation effects of COVID-19 and explained that Nellie helped her cope with the loneliness she was feeling. She said Nellie gave her a purpose outside of her own worries and provided unlimited snuggles during the most uncertain of times. She even sits on her lap during Zoom meetings. She told us “Last year took so much away from the both of us, but it also brought us together. We became the sunshine for each other during a storm of grief. “
Stories of hope and support are the fuel to help us keep helping others, and this story is a perfect example of what we strive to achieve for patients and their pets.
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