When it was time， Bonnie brought Cassie into the client comfort room， an area that those of us associated with The Changes Program had adapted to be more conductive to humane animal death and client grief.
The dog was lying down by Bonnie， who was on the floor on a soft pad. Bonnie began to pet and talk to her. “There you are， girl. You’ re right here by Mom. Everything is okay.”
The time for euthanasia arrived and Cassie was sleeping peacefully， her head resting on Bonnie’s stomach. She looked comfortable， very much at ease. Dr. Bush whispered， “May we begin the procedure？” And Bonnie nodded in affirmation.
“But first，” she said softly， “I would like to say a prayer.”
She reached out to take our hands and we all reached out our hands to one another. Within this sacred circle， Bonnie softly prayed， “Dear Lord， thank you for giving me this beautiful dog for the past fourteen years. I know she was a gift from you. Today， as painful as it is， I know it is time to give her back. And， dear Lord， thank you for bringing these women to me. They have helped me beyond measure. I attribute their presence to you. Amen.”
Through our tears， we whispered our own “amens”， all squeezing one another’s hands in support of the rightfulness of the moment.
And then， while Cassie continued to sleep peacefully on her caretaker’s belly， the doctor gave the dog the final injection. Cassie did not wake up. Through it all， she did not move. She just slipped out of this life into the next. It was quick， peaceful and painless， just as we had predicted. Immediately following Cassie’s passing， I made a clay impression of her front paw. I handed the paw print to Bonnie and she held it tenderly against her cheek. We all sat quietly until Bonnie broke the silence， saying， “If my husband had to die， I wish he could have died this way.”
Six weeks later， I received a letter from Bonnie.She had scattered Cassie’s remains on the same mountain where Hank’s were scattered. Now her two best friends were together again. She said somehow Cassie’s death， and especially the way in which she had died， had helped her resolve the death of her husband.