Animals are Blessings to Us All

This is my entry for the Postie Carnival that will be held on February 26, 2007. The topic of this carnival is animals. I love animals and usually have at least a dog and a cat. Horses are fine animals, they are just a little too big for me to handle. When I was younger and lived alone, I always had two German Shepherds. I would say that I had the dogs for protection, but it was really for their company. My last Shepherd died while I was married and my husband would not let me replace her. I left him and took our cat.

When I was pregnant, I decided a cat was enough and lived without a dog for 2 years. Then God sent me a dog. I was holding my son up to the hospital room window so that my mom could see him because he was too young to visit. Leonardo, a black mix of Labrador and Dachshund (yes, he was a strange little dog), walked up to us and laid down at our feet. He lived with us for 3 years until he died.

Again, I thought that I had enough to do to raising my child and taking care of my mother, so I did not look for a replacement for Leo. Again, God sent a dog to us. We were attending a birthday party for one of my son's friends. Up ran this little fluffy yellow dog. Mac, my son, said, "Mom, can we keep him?" I said, "He is some one's dog, honey. We cannot just take him." He was sad, but he understood. That little ball of fluff followed us around all day.

Two days later the mother of the birthday boy called me to ask if we would like to have that little yellow dog. The owners wanted a purebred and wanted to get rid of Mac (that was the dog's name). I decided having a boy and a dog both named Mac would be too confusing. So Mac, the little yellow dog, became Rags.

Rags, the RVing Dog

Rags is 12 years old and has been the best dog I have ever had. When we go RVing, he is always up for a trip.

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St. Francis of Assisi
Blessing of the Animals


Blessed are you, Lord God, maker of all living creatures.
You called forth fish in the sea, birds in the air and animals on the land.
You inspired St. Francis to call all of them his brothers and sisters.
We ask you to bless this pet.
By the power of your love, enable it to live according to your plan.
May we always praise you for all your beauty in creation.
Blessed are you, Lord our God, in all your creatures!

Amen

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Selected Quotes on Animals

You think dogs will not be in heaven? I tell you, they will be there long before any of us. ~Robert Louis Stevenson

The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. ~Mahatma Gandhi

And God took a handful of southerly wind, blew His breath over it and created the horse. ~Bedouin Legend

Thousands of years ago, cats were worshipped as gods. Cats have never forgotten this. ~Anonymous

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The Postie Carnival this week will be hosted on Marisa's Dandelion Patch on February 26, 2007. Please visit and read all the great entries about animals.