CHICAGO, Illinois: No words can ever explain the pain and the sorrow the death of a loved pet brings. It is an overwhelming grief which is beyond sadness, beyond despair. Yet while some people see it as a constant pain tugging their hearts, some people regard such a passing as a glimpse of what life should and can be.
Media mogul Oprah Winfrey is one such person. She is still suffering from the loss of a dear family member - Gracie - her two-year-old Golden Retriever. Though months have passed, the memory of Gracie still lives on and brings tears to the eyes of animal-lover Oprah.
As she recalls in O, The Oprah Magazine, the fateful event happened one sunny afternoon. Having returned from a late lunch with her friends, Oprah decided to let the caretaker walk Gracie and her two other dogs for their daily exercise. After giving each a hug goodbye and a kiss on Gracie's furry forehead, the gang headed out the door. Gracie never made it home. Tragically, she choked on a small ball lying on the grass, which belonged to Oprah's twelve-year-old cocker spaniel.
"I got a call and heard the words 'she's down and not breathing,'" Oprah said. "I ran out of the house frantically, barefoot, and saw one of my security guards pumping Gracie's chest. When I reached them, the guard looked up and said, 'I'm sorry. We tried everything. She's gone, ma'am. She's gone.'"
According to USA Today, Oprah said she just stood there, tears flowing down her face, and watched as they placed Gracie's still-warm body on the back of a golf cart. Shocked and weeping, Oprah said her eyes fixed on the lipstick mark left on Gracie's white forehead moments earlier. She leaned over her sweet Gracie and asked, "What did you want to show me through your death?"
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“This was the message her Gracie wanted her to know. Gracie's life was a gift, and her death a wake up call - a call to what life is and how it should be lived.”
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The answer came when Oprah visited the spot where Gracie passed away. Through her tears, she called out Gracie's name. Though Gracie would never again run out of the bushes to her open arms, Oprah still called again and again. It was at this moment she realized that she found pleasure and happiness in calling out her name.
Oprah said Gracie gave her happiness for more than two years. She was full of energy, always moving, gobbling treats, and gulping down food. She never slowed down... until the fateful day she went to dog heaven.
Oprah, being the host of her own talk show, running her own production company, publishing her own magazines, having a radio show, gracing charitable events here and there, managing her foundations, attending countless events, has undoubtedly a very busy life.
Now she knows it's time to stop and smell the roses. Time to slow down and take it easy. This was the message her Gracie wanted her to know. Gracie's life was a gift, and her death a wake up call - a call to what life is and how it should be lived.
Lessons can be learned from life's most devastating events. For those who have not gone through the tragedy of losing a pet, it may mean taking all safety precautions to make a home pet-safe. For others, it may mean a gift and a message that had to be understood the hard way.
what a very sad story this is. it seemed that Gracie was such a beautiful dog. i would also feel sad if i lost my dog the same way. oprah hang in there. although death may be sad, its good to hear that it somehow showed you a glimpse of what you should do with your life and how you should take care of it.
This is sad and beautiful. I have never experienced any pet loss, but I have seen people close to me suffer from such tragedy. The pain is unbearable. Perhaps there really is a reason for every tragedy but only when the pain subsides can one see light from the sadness and loss..
its a good thing she didn't blame the caregiver. or did she? you really wouldn't wanna mess with oprah's dogs. hey oprah, if your read this, sorry for your loss.
the moral lesson here is to not buy your dogs too many toys, i think that oprah in a way substituted real human love for the stuff money can buy.. tsk.
I,like you, are an animal lover, too. The story about Gracie tore my heart apart. I lost an animal, Cocker Spaniel due to heart attack. His name was Ollie and died when he was 9. He has been gone more then 10 years now, but I still see him by my bedside unable to lay down but he still brought me his favorite toy. Took him to emergency the next morning and that was the last I saw of him.He may not be with me now, but I still love him and feel his presence in the room and the best medicine I have is to think of him of the good times together. I now have a cat which I have had for 6 years which I got at the SPCA and she is the love of my life. I am so glad I saved her life. Everyone who is thinking of getting an animal, Please, first go to animal shelters etc. to save a life.
my deepest regrets and sympathy to Oprah on the loss of Gracie. That kind of hurt lingers for a long time, as I well know.
I'm sorry to say, they should have cut a one inch hole in the dogs windpipe and she wouldn't have choked to death. But how to do it properly is unfortunately limited to medical personnel; I've often wondered if I could do it if I was present at a choking incident. Oprah is in a position to get this demonstrated to her for the future.
i offer you my condolences Oprah. i can really relate to how you must be feeling. i also lost a much loved pet. my golden retriever passed away just late last year and it was really a depressing time for me. if anything, its good that somehow Gracie's death made you realize something important in your life.
Condolences. I grew up on a farm in Illinois and loss of pets was the way we learned about the cycle of life. Sometimes people say to me that I accept death of friends and family better than they would and I think, they are saying I do not grieve enough. I learned young, that things are born and they die and it is how we enjoy their presence that is important.
However, when we moved to Colorado we were not able to bring our beloved beagle dog "Boo" and seveal months later learned she had died. We have been without her for six years and we still miss her. Last week we adopted a ten year old Lhasa apso and we are learning to love him, too, but we find ourselves calling him Boo. That one left an indelible mark on our hearts.
i was able to read this story on Oprah's magazine and it really made me cry. death is really a tragic thing and i can only imagine how Oprah is taking this sad part of her life.
I lost my beloved Bruno 7 years ago. It was so painful - the pain that is beyond words. The pain lingered on for months and months. For a time, I could not bear the thought of owning another dog.. until my husband came home with a little yorkie with a little red bow on her head. I fell in love with her. It then came to me that the happiness the dog brings is worth every thing, even the pain.
ian: i don't think Lady O would have blamed the caregiver at all. accidents happen. even oprah knows that. sorry for your loss, oprah.
so sorry to hear about that. our condolences, oprah.
losing a loved one, whether a person or a pet is really very sad news. sometimes you would even feel worse if you're closer to your pet than a family member. i can only imagine how oprah must have felt especially when she witnessed her people trying to revive her dog.
well yeah, probly not. but oprah ain't perfect too you know.
Ian: the woman lost her dog and the dog was like her family, maybe now's not the time to hate on her..
such a sad story. i guess if its really your time, its your time. at least oprah was able to kiss her pet goodbye before she passed away. i offer you my deepest condolences Oprah.
even if she weren't oprah, she's still a pet owner who lost her loved one. and i'm sure anyone who has gone through this can completely understand.
My deepest condolances to you Oprah on the loss of your beloved Gracie. I have long admired you both as a woman and a dog lover. I know you love your dogs like children, as I do mine. I do have a son, but my Golden Retriever was my second baby. His death last week has taken me to a grief I never thought possible. He was only 7 years old and got diagnosed with gastric cancer. They removed a large tumor was his stomach and said that he should have a good number of healthy years. But less than a month later, on my birthday, the cancer came back full-force. Within ONE day, I saw my energetic dog dying in front of me. I knew he was suffering and gave the vet my permission to put him to sleep. I know there was a sign/message there for me too; that he died on my birthday. But I still can't figure out what it is. For now, I am still in deep mourning and life without my dog is quite simply, PAINFUL. I just hope he's in a good place and he knows i much I love him. So believe me, Oprah, I know how you feel and I wish you strength. God bless you. You are remarkable.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Kathy, our condolences to you on the loss of your beloved pet.
We have a labrador named yuki and she has been with us since my sister was 6 and she is now 16. yuki is still happily barking at strangers at our door but anyone can notice how she limps and how she eats only a quarter of the food we give her. we know she's in her final years and my sister is even planning her burial already but everytime i think about it i cry as though she's already gone . losing a cherished pet is like losing a human loved one.
it is never easy to lose a much loved pet especially if you've had them since they were a puppy. time is really all you will need to overcome this hard obstacle.