With the generous donation of a wheelchair, Macy regained the use of her back legs and became a full functioning dog within about 6 months. 

Duke was a sweet Dachshund who came to me with back issues. He too couldn’t walk and could not control his bathroom habits at all. 

One wheelchair, a few months, and about 10lbs lighter, Duke was running around with the rest of them. He never did regain control of his bathroom habits, but he became my savior killing palmetto bugs and the like. It was a game with us. I’d see a bug and yell, “Dukey, Dukey. Save me. Save me.” He’d come a running and took care of those nasty bugs that plague us southerners. 

There were others. Emmett I rescued because he was unadoptable according to the pound. They labeled him a biter. Turns out, he was one of the sweetest babies I’d ever met. But he was deaf and in the pound he was terrified. He wasn’t a biter, he was just scared. 

While I mostly rescued dogs, several cats came my way as well. Two of them I still have. Miss Kitty is an orange tabby that was homeless and had 3 feral babies. Try as I might, I was never able to tame the babies so we fixed and released them. But 9 years later, Miss Kitty still sleeps on my pillow. 

Alex came with a very sad story. He was abandoned at a marina where he was bullied by other cats and even boat owners. According to the story I was told, there were several times he’d been thrown off boats into the water. The woman who brought him to me couldn’t keep him and was terrified something was going to happen to him. 

He’s my big baby now and has been for years. 

In 2019, I lost my husband unexpectedly. I channeled the grief into training to become a Trauma Recovery Coach. Given the traumas I’ve experienced in my past, it seemed like a good fit. 

But it was more like trying to force a puzzle piece into a spot where it almost goes, but not quite. 

I now run a nonprofit for trauma survivors but needed more. 

I’d seen online stories by vets who shared that many pet owners cannot bring themselves to be in the room when it was time to say goodbye to their fur babies. 

I have a rule in my home, no animal dies unless they are in my arms. Of course, a few have ignored that rule, but I have been there for the majority. 

And I thought, why couldn’t I provide something like that for people? I understand how painful it is to be in the room watching your baby fade away. I could be there when others can’t. 

Thus, The Rainbow Bridge Doula was born. 

It is my honor to help guide and support you and your loved one in this next phase of life.