I saw it all, and I hope God will spare me
from ever seeing another living creature, man or beast, in such an awful
collision of metal and flesh.
So we took the dog to the animal E.R. and
they found he has four fractures in his pelvis. They recommended surgery to
install a metal plate to repair the worst break, and estimated the cost to be
between $3000 and $5000. Not a financial option for us.
They just sent him home with pain medication
and told us to try to keep him quiet. For two days he would not eat, stand,
urinate, and would barely drink. Movement that involved his right side made him
cry out. I took the x-rays to our regular vet and told him how Jethro was
behaving. The vet, Dr. Herron, is an older man with a wonderful combination of
experience, technical skills, and compassion for animals and people. He said,
for the sake of the dog, if things don’t improve, you’ll have to put him down.
So after a couple days of this we were ready
to do what all pet owners dread. We had talked to the veterinary office several
times in the interim, and so the next morning we were prepared.
The night before I had told our Bible study
about our dog, and several had prayed for Jethro. One woman spoke encouragingly
about the love of Christ even for our animals.
Dionne sat with him in the back of the car as
we headed for the vet’s for our appointment. Dionne and I prayed one more time:
Lord, if there is anything we should see
to delay or stop this decision, please let Dr. Herron know.
Two of the assistants put him on a stretcher
and we followed to the room where animals are euthanized. He lay upon a table
over a sink. I said, “Dr. Herron, before we do anything, would you just please
look him over one more time?” Dr. Herron began to poke and prod. He said, “Let’s
catheterize him.” Jethro was very uncomfortable with this, so I held his head
and told him he was a good dog. But, thankfully, after maybe five minutes, his
bladder emptied.
A few more minutes passed. Then, unbelievably
Jethro began to wag his tail. He raised his head. Dr. Herron said, “Let’s take
him outside on the grass.” We lifted him back to the stretcher, and carried him
to the back lawn. “Can you get him to stand?” We did. “Now you two go over
there and call him.” Dionne and I walked a few feet away. “Jethro…come here,
boy.” With tail wagging, he began to limp on three legs toward us. We moved
back, and he followed. Maybe it wasn’t a miracle, but it sure felt like it.
So we brought him home. Not his ashes in a
little box, but his furry, golden, soft-eyed, broken-legged self. I don’t know
how this is all going to work. But I’m pretty sure Somebody likes dogs and
their people, too.
If Jesus cares about a broken little dog, how
much more will He care for you and me?
Look at the birds of the air: they neither
sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
Are you not of more value than they? Matthew 6:26
