Tilly's owner had aquired two new dogs from which they had bred a litter of puppies, so they no longer had room nor want for poor 14 year old smelly Tilly. So they opened their front door and sent her on her way.
We heard this story from my husband's work collegue who knew Tilly's owner, they had read in a local newspaper that Tilly had been found wandering the streets and been taken to a kennel.
We decided that we couldn't bear to think of an old dog spending her final days in a kennel, afterall approaching her 15th year she couldn't have too much longer left, could she?

So, we went to collect her from the kennel. I thought she was a funny looking thing, her ears were like leather where her old owners puppies had chewed off all the hair. She had atrocious breath, we had her rotten teeth removed and the hair on her ears grew back eventually.

After a few happy years living with us Tilly's health eventually started to decline, she was struggling to climb up the step from the back garden into the house, she needed help getting up onto her couch cushion, her walks were getting shorter - she was no longer joining us with our german shepherd on long walks, and she wasn't looking quite her cheery self anymore and she was also now becoming incontinent. We put up a stair gate because several times she fell down the stairs.
So, we faced the agonisingly hard decision of having her put to sleep - after a few months and a trip to the vets where we(I) then couldn't go through with it... we agreed that the following week if there was no improvement it was time to let her go.

During this period I was training for my Reiki, second degree. I had heard about 'healing' and thought it was a wonderful idea, but I wasn't convinced it would actually work. I need proof to believe in these things so I investigated it with an open mind and finally decided to have a go myself. Before I started my training I experimented with Tilly and I didn't feel a thing, Tilly fidgeted and looked at me as if to say "well, are you going to stoke me or what?"

The Monday morning after I had achieved my second degree (and the week she was due to be put to sleep) - I couldn't wait to get my hands on Tilly. I helped her onto the couch, and she settled down beside me. I placed my hands on her head and body and within minutes my hands were tingling and feeling very hot, I thought to myself "ok, this is interesting!" and shortly after that tilly went into a deep snoring sleep.
We sat together for a little over an hour. Tilly awoke, stretched and immediately darted off the couch and out of the sitting room, I ran after her as she shot out the kitchen door, did a quick lap of the garden with her tail spinning around, leapt back up the door step into the house, flew back through to the sitting room and straight up on to the couch again, then stood proudly... whilst me and my completely sceptical husband stared in amazement. Even Paul had to admit there must be something in this healing lark!

Every morning it became our ritual, Tilly would follow me around demanding her healing until I sat on the couch where she would settle herself down beside me.

She was a new dog, I refered to this period as her second 'puppyhood' she was joining us on long walks again... Needless to say, we didn't have her put to sleep that week, or the next - she had another happy year with us after our first decision to have her put to sleep.

But finally, late one evening I noticed she had thrown up on the carpet and was lying very still on her bed and her breathing was very laboured. I sat with her and offered her healing and for a while she showed signs of improvement, her breathing calmed down and she seemed peaceful but I believed it was her time - her organs were struggling to carry on supporting her old body and I felt she was now in pain, so I called my husband and we rushed her to the vets. Sadly, at midnight as we stroked her goodbye our beautiful girl fell asleep for the final time. Shortly before her 19th Birthday.

I am eternally grateful for the peace that healing gave to Tilly and for the precious time we spent together during the healing that made the bond between us so much greater.

Rest in peace Tilly Nilly Vanilly.

15/09/1989 - 08/05/2008