Thursday, November 9, 2023

A Paw on the Rainbow Bridge

I've coined a saying in our family that helps us make end-of-life decisions: does so-and-so have a paw on the Rainbow Bridge?

That term is actually based on a poem and is considered a euphemism for a pet heaven.

If the animal hasn't placed a paw on the Rainbow Bridge, we should continue supporting life. But if the animal has, our job is to make the passage as smooth as possible.

Well, Faith has placed a paw on the Rainbow Bridge.

And we are guiding her gently over the bridge later this morning.


She's a great cat who has lived up to her name, especially since she lived nearly twenty times longer than doctors predicted when we chose palliative care in the spring of 2022 over chemotherapy.

Cats with small cell lymphoma live just two to three months on prednisolone alone (I actually found one in the literature that lived twelve). We received nineteen and a half months, and she amazed those veterinarians involved in her care.

So please wish her safe and peaceful journey to the other side.

And finally...


Thank you for all the good thoughts you've sent up for her more than a year and a half.

I know they made a difference in extending her life to the miracle that she was...

...a beautiful calico named Faith.




4 comments:

Teresa Ellinger said...

So sorry. I know how much you all loved her. May she go gently. As I have said she had the sweetest face. ❤️πŸ™πŸ»

Denise M. Baran-Unland said...

Thank you! She wound up taking her paw off yesterday morning. But she's still standing at the edge of the bridge. So it's day by day with her. Thank you for all your good thoughts over this past year and a half. I know they helped her get this far. πŸ’›

Diane Short said...

πŸ’” So sad when we have to part with them! You seem to have a good perspective for helping your children, family & friends thru the loss. You are a strong person.🌳

Denise M. Baran-Unland said...

Thank you, Diane. Faith actually took her paw off the bridge. So we still have her, for now. She is living up to her name for sure. Thank you for the kind words. It's a stressful time, for sure.