Beatrice the Miracle Dog
She came to us in a tragic yet beautiful way
It was highly unusual for my father to be calling me in the middle of the afternoon on his cell phone. With a bit of trepidation, I answered, “Dad, what’s up?”
“Mark, I feel terrible. A dog ran out in front of me out on Route 204, and I hit it going 50 miles per hour. Can you come and help me find it so we can give it a proper burial?” His voice was shaky, and I knew he was terribly upset. Dad explained where he was, so I immediately headed out to find him and the unfortunate animal.
Both my parents were in their mid-eighties. They lived next door to my wife and me, in the house where I enjoyed a very happy childhood with my brother and sister. They always had dogs as pets, but since the late 1960s when Dad brought home our first springer spaniel puppy, a continuous succession of that loyal breed has graced their humble, central Ohio home. Mom and Dad’s current springer, Sarah, was getting along in years. Even so, she and Dad still took daily walks in the streets around Millersport.
As I approached the farmhouse close to where the accident occurred, I saw Dad’s car in the driveway. I noticed a significant amount of damage to the bumper and fairings on the front end. Dad was kneeling by the vehicle, looking things over.
“Have you found the dog?” I inquired as I pulled in.
“No, I can’t find it anywhere.” He then went on to explain in more detail what happened. “As I was passing that dilapidated barn across the highway, a brown and white dog darted out right in front of me. There was nothing I could do. I hit it at full speed, and I felt it roll under the car, banging against the underside all the way back. Poor thing. It didn’t have a chance.”
I looked around the area where Dad said it happened, but I couldn’t see any clues as to where the dog might be. So we decided to knock on the door of the old farmhouse to find out if the animal might have been theirs.
A teenage girl came to the door. After we explained the situation, she said the only dog that fit the description was out by the shed in the back yard. The girl led us through the gate and called out “Beatrice…Beatrice, where are you?” We found the dog lying in a hollowed out area in the dirt by the shed.
Dad and I both gasped at once when we saw her. She was a springer spaniel.
Beatrice was in terrible shape. She was significantly malnourished, both ears were infected and full of burrs, she had a cut above her left eye, and her two front “elbows” were scraped raw and bleeding. It was obvious she was the poor creature Dad hit on the highway. Beatrice was breathing very slowly but, miraculously, she was still alive. We gently inspected her ribs, legs and head, and we saw no evidence of any broken bones or any other serious injury.
“BeBe has lived outside for the past few months because she would pee on the floor whenever we raised our voices or when storms came through. She had a litter of puppies earlier this summer.” It was apparent the poor little dog was barely an adult, and that she obviously had a very difficult time fending for herself (and her puppies!) during what had been a very hot summer. After making sure Beatrice had access to food and water we thanked the girl for allowing us on their property.
Over the next several days, at Dad’s request, I drove out to the farmhouse to check on BeBe. She lifted her head and sniffed my hand on the second day, and on the third day Beatrice actually trudged up to meet me as I got out of the car. I spoke with the girl’s mother who explained that they were trying to find a home for BeBe because they simply didn’t have the means to care for her properly. “She needs a family who will love her and see to her medical needs.”
Dad, Mom, my wife Donna, and other family members talked about adopting Beatrice. Because Mom and Dad already had Sarah, BeBe could stay next door at our house, at least for the time being. Donna and I currently owned a little female pug-a-poo (part pug and part poodle), Lippy, but she was and is a wonderfully accommodating little creature who is accustomed to having other dogs stay with us for extended periods of time. We made the decision to welcome BeBe into our family.
Her new homecoming was a joyful occasion. Everyone was there to greet her and to shower her with love and affection. Beatrice seemed to get along well with Sarah who patiently tolerated her extended visits next door. Like most springers, BeBe loved to play fetch, and within a week she was bounding at full speed chasing balls all over the yard. We cleaned up her matted fur, took her to the local vet for an examination and immunizations, and treated her like a princess. Her transformation seemed miraculous.
God had another surprise in store for us, one that revealed how he providentially cares for us, even in our losses. The very next week Sarah became ill, and within a couple days she passed away (peacefully) from an unidentified infection. There were plenty of tears, but BeBe’s presence helped to take the edge off the loss. Soon she moved in permanently to Mom and Dad’s home where she became an integral part of every routine.
This past year, Mom also went on to be with the Lord. Her death was a terrible loss for us all, and especially for Dad. Even though my wife and I and our entire family take good care of him, life would be difficult and lonely for Dad if he didn’t have BeBe as his constant companion.
What are the odds, given the wide variety of “makes and models” of dogs out there, that a springer spaniel would run out in front of Dad’s car that fateful day and miraculously live through such a brutal impact? God watches the sparrows, he has our hairs numbered, and he providentially orchestrates the chance meeting of a dog and a man who need each other.