Our animals are our teachers in so many unexpected ways. Whilst playing in the long grass in our back yard Chino picked up three ticks. They are tiny but can be lethal. I noticed something about the way he was struggling to climb the steps. He had mastered the steps a few days ago and suddenly his little back legs seemed to be too weak to climb. We took him out into a quiet park to play with a ball and he tried so hard to run, but he just wanted to sit on my knee.
So the next day we took him to the vet. Slowly inch by inch the vet checked him and there on his throat was a tick. Not just an ordinary bush tick, it was a paralysis tick. He took it off him and then continued to look through Chino’s fur. There was another and another. We were told we have a very sick puppy. He would have to stay in the hospital for the night. Lethargic and floppy we handed over our 8 week old dog to Peter the vet and drove home empty handed.
Climate change has brought so many strange events as we all know but one of the strangest is that Australian ticks have begun to infest our gardens in the winter. Unheard of. Bandicoots are the hosts for the ticks and after they dig around in the yard at night the fat little ticks just fall off into the grass and wait for another host. Chino was the next host for those three ticks.
As our pets are our teachers through unconditional love and selfless service I am sure he was protecting us from something or helping us to see something we were not aware of. In what ways am I paralysing myself? That’s how our pets work. They will gift us with insight by serving as selfless teachers.
I will continue to contemplate and work on what Chino wants me (us) to know and learn and in the mean time, I wait. His gag reflex was paralysed and so today he will be given a little food and hopefully is able to hold it down. Get well Chino. We are sending you all our healing and love.