...was my lamb, rejected by her mother. She suffered neurological damage in her first few days of life and so our journey together for recovery and
health began. I named her Eden Prosper because that is what I wanted her to do: heal and prosper. We spent the better part of two months doing just that.
Eden moved into the house, then into my bed and finally to a tent in the backyard where we both slept hunkered down against each other for comfort and warmth.
This is how Eden learned to re-join the herd after completely recovering from a life-threatening injury. She lived a normal Vermont life, grazing and
frolicking in the pasture for 13 years. It is an experience that I hold very dear and one that has changed the way I view our ability to heal.
At this time I am working on a series of books and stories which tell the whole "tail" of Eden and our life together.
Sampson was a Black Lab puppy. My beloved cat, Emma, was at the vet for some surgery, and while I was waiting for her to come out of recovery, I amused myself at the flower farm next door. The young woman who helped me with my flower order asked if I had seen the cute puppy at the clinic who was going to be put to sleep due to tricuspid dysplasia; the valve in his heart didn’t open and close properly. As soon as I had paid for my plants, I returned to the clinic to inquire about the cute puppy. I was told about the heart condition and that the breeder was not adverse to finding a home with the understanding that he was ill. I volunteered to take him for a walk while I waited for Emma to wake up. Various people at the clinic took turns bringing the pup home while seeking a forever-family for him. I left, offering to take a turn, and received a call just days later with the request to care for him that weekend (I think they recognized my mushy heart). So, Sampson and I went home together ‘just for the weekend’. He ended up living a longer than expected life of 2 1/2 years with me; what a gift he was and oh what he taught me about living each day to its fullest.
Ida, named after my beloved grandmother and favorite person, is one of my most endearing alpacas (though I love each one in the herd). Several years ago in
the middle of winter, Ida went off to meet her true love at another farm. When she returned home, she seemed a bit off so I contacted my vet; blood tests and an
exam elicited a prognosis that was grim. She was too sick to be moved to a hospital like Cornell for further testing or treatment. The furthest she could be moved
was into my guest house that, thankfully, was vacant at the time. She lived with her alpaca friend, Artemis, in a cozy pen that we constructed, for nearly ten weeks.
(They enjoyed watching Oprah and Ellen). The vet came weekly, still unable to offer any hope, but I did not give up. We went through several transfusions, many
sleepless nights and weeks of concern. Miraculously, she did finally recover from unwavering love, care, meds and a super-healing food regimen. She bounded across
the field when reintroduced to her friends. This alpaca is extremely friendly and often clownish...one day, she dunked her big nose into my mugful of decaf coffee
and slurped it right up! Ida is another one of those amazing animals that teaches me about the body and its ability to heal given the opportunity.
More on the adventures of Ida and Artemis to follow in my up coming stories.