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Where are we??

Companions For Life is located at Portland, NSW, Australia. Click here for more information.

Looking for that great family pet???

Give me a call and have a chat about your new family member!

Call Andrea on 0418171896

Dogs for Rural Areas

Do you live on acreage and are looking for a dog who is suitable (or used to) rural living?

Our dogs in care (big and small) are able to be tested with the variety of livestock (eg feathered and furry) prior to being adopted.

For Guardian breeds please see our Maremma Rescue Page or if your interested in a smaller house dog that is good on acreage and trustworthy around stock, just give me a call on 02 6355 5004 or 0418171896 (evenings are best) to discuss your situation and what your looking for.

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Proudly Australian

Tissue Box Alert

Why? by Kristen Zekic November 2004

Baggage! A Rescue Poem by Evelyn Colbath

Am I Going Home Today?

The Starfish

A Pet's Prayer

One by One

Why?

Why?

We used to play together

You called me your best friend

You said you’d be there for me

Until the very end

What happened to make you leave me?

What made you say goodbye?

Why did you leave me here?

Why can’t you tell me why?

Was it because I chewed your shoes?

Or was it because I pulled on the leash?

Was it because I grew too quickly?

Or was it because I ate the quiche

So now I lie here waiting

For you to come my way

I hope you do come soon

For this is my last day

No one wants a dog

As big and old as me

Do I deserve a home

What I’ve done wrong, I cannot see

So when the lady comes

To take me from my stall

I promise to follow gently

I will not fight at all

And when she puts me on the table

And inserts the cold syringe

I will not even cry

And I will not even cringe

Because then I will be happy

I will be in a better place

The cruel people in this world

I will no longer have to face

But before I go, I must ask

Just one last question…

Why?

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Written by Kristen Zekic November 2004

Baggage - A Rescue Poem

written by Evelyn Colbath 1995 - all rights reserved

Now that I'm home, bathed, settled and fed,

All nicely tucked in my warm new bed.

I'd like to open my baggage lest I forget

There is so much to carry - So much to regret.

Hmm . . . Yes there it is, right on the top.

Let's unpack Loneliness, Heartache and Loss;

And there by my leash hides Fear and Shame.

As I look on these things I tried so hard to leave –

I still have to unpack my baggage called Pain.

I loved them, the others, the ones who left me,

But I wasn't good enough - for they didn't want me.

Will you add to my baggage?

Will you help me unpack?

Or will you just look at my things -

And take me right back?

Do you have the time to help me unpack?

To put away my baggage, to never repack?

I pray that you do - I'm so tired you see,

But I do come with baggage –

Will YOU still want ME?

Am I Going Home Today?

My family brought me home with them,

snugly cradled in their arms.

They cuddled me and smiled at me,

and said I was full of charm.

We would laugh and play all day,

they showered me with toys.

I soon learned to love my family,

especially the girls and boys.

The children loved to feed me,

they'd give me special treats.

They even let me sleep with them,

all snuggled in the sheets.

I used to get to go for walks,

often several times a day.

They'd even fight to hold my leash,

I am proud to say.

They used to laugh and praise me

when I played with my old shoe,

but I was never taught the difference

between the old ones and the new.

The kids and I would grab a rag,

and for hours we would tug.

So I thought I did the right thing

when I chewed the bathroom rug.

They said I was out of control,

and would have to live outside.

This I did not understand,

although I tried and tried.

The walks stopped one by one,

they said they didn't have time.

I wish that I could change things,

I wish I knew my crime.

My life became so lonely,

in the backyard on a chain.

I barked and barked all day long,

to keep from going insane.

So they brought me to a shelter,

but were embarrassed to say why.

They said I caused an allergy,

and then kissed me good-bye.

If I'd only had some training,

when I was just a pup,

I wouldn't have been so confused

when I was all grown up.

"This one has only one hour left,"

I heard the worker say.

Does this mean I get a second chance?

Am I going home today? 

...The Starfish...

Once upon a time there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.

One day he was walking along the shore. As he looked down the beach, he saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself to think of someone who would dance to the day.

So he began to walk faster to catch up. As he got closer, he saw that it was a young man and the young man wasn't dancing, but instead he was reaching down to the shore, picking up something and very gently throwing it into the ocean.

As he got closer he called out, "Good morning! What are you doing?" The young man paused, looked up and replied, "Throwing starfish in the ocean." "I guess I should have asked, why are you throwing starfish in the ocean?"

"The sun is up, and the tide is going out. And if I don't throw them in they'll die."

"But, young man, don't you realise that there are miles and miles of beach, and starfish all along it. You can't possibly make a difference!"

The young man listened politely. Then bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it into the sea, past the breaking waves and said, "It made a difference for that one!"

...A Pet's Prayer...

If it should be, that I grow frail and weak,

And pain should keep me from my sleep,

Then, you must do what must be done

For this, the last battle, can't be won.

Don't let your grief stay your hand,

For this day more than the rest,

Your love and friendship stand the test.

We've had so many years,

What is to come can hold no fear.

You'd not want me to suffer, so

When the time comes, please let me go.

Take me where my needs they'll tend,

Only, stay with me to the end

And hold me firm and speak to me

Until my eyes no longer see.

I know in time you'll see it is a kindness you do for me

Although my tail its last has waved,

From pain and suffering I've been saved.

Don't grieve it should be you who this thing decides to do.

We've been so close, we two, these years,

Don't let your heart hold tears.

SMILE, FOR WE WALKED TOGETHER FOR AWHILE 

One by One

One by one, they file past my cage

Too old, too worn, too broken, no way

Way past his time, he can't run and play

Then they shake their heads slowly and go

on their way

A little old man, arthritic and sore

It seems I am not wanted anymore

I once had a home, I once had a bed

A place that was warm, and where I was fed

Now my muzzle is grey, and my eyes slowly fail

Who wants a dog so old and so frail?

My family decided I didn't belong

I got in their way; my attitude was wrong

Whatever excuse they made in their head

Can't justify how they left me for dead

Now I sit in this cage, where day after day

The younger dogs all get adopted away

When I had almost come to the end of my rope

You saw my face, and I finally had hope

You saw through the grey and the legs bent with age

And felt that I still had life beyond this cage

You took me home, gave me food an a bed

And shared your own pillow with my poor tired head

We snuggle and play and you talk to me low

You love me so dearly, you want me to know

I may have lived most of my life with another

But you outshine them with a love so much stronger

And I promise to return all the love I can give

To you, my dear person, as long as I live

I may be with you for a week or for years

We will share many smiles, you will no doubt shed tears

And when the time comes that God deems I must leave

I know you will cry and your heart it will grieve

And when I arrive at the Bridge all brand new

My thoughts and my heart will still be with you

And I will brag to all that will hear

Of the person who made my last days oh, so dear

Author Unknown