My Mail Carrier...

My mail carrier came to my house this morning, around 11am. I was still in my pajamas and she was hand delivering a certified letter from a bill collector. I signed as she pet Nali. A connection was made. She told me how just 48 hours before, she had her own dog put down by the vet. Last year, about this time, her 2 year old pup had been shot, point blank in the head, by pheasant hunters annoyed by her presence. Fortunately, the shot had gone through her upper snout and out the other side, missing her eyes and brain. She had lived through the ordeal and was seemingly healthy… until about a week ago. She became lethargic and her owner took her to the vet where she had remained for 5 days, getting gradually worse. A couple of days ago, her pupils and gums turned yellow, suggesting jaundice. Blood tests revealed an inoperable illness and the autopsy and x-rays suggest that there had been a metal fragment in her snout from last year’s shooting that made it into her blood stream and traveled to her liver, slicing it and causing irreparable damage. The loss of her loved one was still raw as she rubbed Denali’s head and snuggled in for a lick on her cheek, commenting on the beauty of Nali’s blue eyes. As she left, she warned me not to let Denali out at night because of the coyotes.