Yesterday, I wrote about looking for where God is working in the midst of challenges. 

I didn’t know less than 24 hours later I’d be forced to choose whether to follow or ignore my own advice. 

We have two German Shepherds named Aspen and Rocky. Aspen is the baby (5), but we’ve had her since she was a pup. We adopted Rocky when he was four (he’s now 7) after his humans abandoned him. 

A week or so ago, Aspen started acting a bit off. Nothing major. She was still eating well, still pottying like usual, but she was a bit less playful than her usual ALWAYS playful self, and was panting when she’d lay on her side. Since there were no other clues, we kept an eye on her and began the process of looking for a vet. (we’ve just relocated)

The last two days, we noticed her acting like she doesn’t feel well, but again, no major symptoms — we finally heard back from a vet and took her today. 

Sadly, our Aspen is a very sick girl. X-rays show that her lungs are full of something. The vet cannot confirm what, but he and the radiologist determined it’s either a severe fungal infection or cancer. Neither are really a best case scenario. Both look very, very bad. 

Since there’s nothing they can do until they determine what it is, we determined, based on the advice of our new vet, to bring her home tonight rather than admit her and have her be alone and stressed in a Veterinary Hospital where they still wouldn’t be treating her, because they’re unsure what they’re dealing with. 

So here we are. 

And here I am. Trying to choose to see where God is working. 

I’m thankful He allowed us to notice — in the midst of all the busyness of the Christmas season — that something is off. 

I’m thankful Rocky’s behavior has been unusual — it caused us to wonder what in the world was going on. He’s always such a good boy, but for two weeks, he’s just about driven us crazy whining. Constantly.

Aspen just turned five. I’m happy she’s had a wonderful, relatively healthy, happy life to this point. 

Aspen has never once gone potty (#1 or #2) in the house since she was a tiny puppy with a UTI. That is unheard of for a dog. 

Rocky is the light of her life. He came into our lives three years ago very unexpectedly, and she loved him from the moment they met. Now, they’re inseparable. 

Apsen chewed the corner of our bed about two years ago during a storm. That is the only thing she’s ever chewed or ruined. She adores her toys. The only damage she’s ever done to a toy was her big fat hedgehog, which she played with so much it became threadbare. Twice. I just bought her third replacement. 

I’m thankful God led us to a Christian veterinary clinic. They are so compassionate — they clearly care about the animals and their humans. 

Finally, today, the vet shared how impressed he is with how well behaved Aspen and Rocky are. We have a long way to go with training, they’re certainly far from perfect, but I’m thankful God gave us two of the best dogs on the planet. I hope we’ve been good stewards of that which God has blessed us with. 

I don’t know what tomorrow holds. We see a specialist at 1:00 PM for answers. We’d appreciate your prayers — I believe God cares deeply about our pets and hears our prayers. 

We’re boldly asking for a Christmas miracle. 

*Crossposted to Substack*