What Is Rainbow Bridge?

Rainbow Bridge is a place where many believe our pets go, after they pass, and wait to reunite with us. Is is also believed that our pets become healthy once again, and enjoy themselves the same as they did when younger, and with us. Is there really a Rainbow Bridge, and should we believe there is? I think so, just the same as many believe when their human relatives and friends pass, they go to Heaven. While I am in no hurry to meet up with my pets at the Bridge, LOL!, I think we all have to have something we truly believe in, and I have found that this belief has been a source of comfort, whenever one of my beloved pets has passed. I do believe that I will definitely be reunited with them again, and it will be a joyful time for us all...beats going to that *other* place!

When I think of my past pets at The Bridge (please don't get the *net* yet!) I envision them all being together..."Baby" playing among the flowers, "Ginger" chasing anything that moves, and "rounding up" all the other dogs for a mad run in circles..."Junior" trying to keep things calm and peaceful..."Randy" trying his paws at "cloud surfing" and "Chance" and "Judge" polishing their halos, and making good use of their angel wings.

So what kind of greeting do I expect when we are all reunited, including my current senior "girls?" Well, since my past pets always enjoyed a party, hopefully, there will be some 50's music (if they have learned to play musical instruments) a beautiful garden with party lights and balloons, being surrounded by my past pets, with lots of hugs and kisses...and best of all, knowing that we will never again be parted.

Since I was curious about what other loving pet owner's thoughts were, I asked two questions: "How do you envision Rainbow Bridge?" "What do you think your pets are doing at Rainbow Bridge?" The following are their thoughts.

"I think that "Corky" (sheltie) and "Toshi" (terrier mix) are with my Dad right now. "Toshi" probably sitting in his lap, and "Corky" at his feet. All are very happy and content. They are watching over me and my loved ones, and doing what they can, to let us live happy lives, while patiently waiting for us. "Corky" was the first to go in 1983. I knew he was okay, because the night we had to put him to sleep, he came to me in a dream, and told me it was alright...that he was fine and happy. He was joined in 1989, by my Dad, and "Toshi" in 1988.

"Well, "Gaspe" is pestering "Tittums," and she is smacking him around. "Pandy" is looking for some little child to watch over and protect, and receiving popcorn treats from the Head Trainer...and all those birds I had as a teenager, are flying around the whole scenario, chuckling and chortling to themselves. Here is my favorite Rainbow Bridge musing: When we think about joining our beloved pets, and the joyous, happy reunion, we usually think of one or two special pets, running to meet us. I always think of people like my Mother. In her lifetime, she had five dogs, seven parakeets, two horses, and probably thirty cats. You can't help but laugh, when imagining the chaos of fur and feathers, hooves, wings, tails and paws (148 paws to be precise) all joyously stampeding head long to meet my Mother, when she arrived at The Bridge! Did they stop in time? Did they run over her? Did she trip over them all? Whenever I feel depressed, this never fails to get me chuckling again. I know it's pretty irreverent, but that's just me, I guess."

"Big open spaces, with all kinds of trees, benches, places to swim (beach? lake?)...busy, but cheerful, yet always enough space to go sit alone, if one so desires."

"A place where blind dogs can see again, where lame dogs can run and run and run, on legs full of strength. Also, I've always had this image of the day I arrive, with a flock of brightly-colored birds, flying to greet me, and then hanging all over me, while I try to scratch all of their heads at the same time. That image is the loveliest thing I can imagine...all my dear feathered loves, there with me once more. Too soon, I will add a small furry dog to my mental image of that someday reunion."

"I see it as a HUGE open field, with lush green grass, and maybe a muddy puddle or two. There is a gigantic rainbow going over it, with the most brilliant, vibrant colors. Birds are singing, there are squirrels to chase (they don't mind at The Bridge) and beautiful, cool ponds and kiddie pools for the labs to splash in...not to mention an endless supply of stuffed kongs...mmm."

"I believe "Smokey," my cat, waited patiently until the day his best friend joined him. Once "Willie" the cockateil met him there, they resumed playing, chasing, hiding, peeking, and pouncing at each other. "Buster," the sad little pup my Grandparents had dumped on them, is probably having true fun, for the first time. He was dumped as a young pup on the farm. Though we all loved him, he didn't stay long. "Buster" was so friendly and cute. He was so playful, that he never realized until too late, that the neighborhood dogs were not playing, they were defending "their territory." Finally, I believe "Buster" can do all the playing he wants, in a place where no harm will come to him."

"I believe "Ivory," my poodle mix, has been able to meet up with other pets she grew up with, or knew before she came to me. She was such a good dog, always taking in my foster pups as her own. If she has nobody there, I am sure she is taking care of others."

"Lady," a sheltie mix we had, is able to once again run, romp and play. She can once again hear all the beautiful sounds age robbed her of. She can move freely, with no pain or unsteadyness. And above all, I believe she has found a place where she can trust anyone, or anything that approaches her."

"Gator," the yorkie, may have been lonely at first, but not for long! I am sure he is defending all at The Bridge. Defending them from turtles, blowing leaves, and tree roots (that look a lot like snakes) in the water."

"Muffy," my first kitty, is probably under the BIGGEST recliner up there! One was always her domain. When she wanders out from under it, it will be to chase butterflies, and to sniff the flowers."

"Faces...the most beautiful faces...with that look of anticipation, contentment, and peace...for as far as one can see. Some would be playing, some resting, some just walking...but the moment a footstep is heard, all eyes would turn and look up. There may be other things in the picture...a meadow, trees, gardens...but all you would really see, are those faces...the ones we've loved so dearly."

"I believe our beloved dogs stay right here on earth (in another dimension) watching over us...the "other side" is simply another dimension...where there is no pain, no physical struggles, no need for food or water. When our time comes to leave this earth, our dogs take us to the "other side." where whatever we envision, becomes our reality."

"Wait for me Butch...wait for Mama. I'll be with you again someday."

" I picture it as a lush green and grassy field, with a stream off to one side, with a wooden bridge going over it, and a rainbow encircling the bridge. Off to the other side, I imagine white, puffy clouds, where humans will arrive through. In the middle, lots of pets frolicking, playing, young and healthy, and free of pain and hurt."

"The one thing that I'm pretty sure about on this, is that wherever they are, they have a clearer understanding of life, or what happened with them, and how much we truly love them. I have always felt their limits of communication with humans are lifted, and they are able to openly communicate with us."

"I would like to prefix this with the note that these are dreams, and I do not personally believe in dreams as truth. This is a compilation of several dreams over a long period of time."

"The dreams all start out the same. I am on a parkland area, with grassy, rolling hills, spotted with clumps of trees, and individual trees, with mountains in the distant background. Small creeks gurgle with crystal clear water, with quaint stone bridges here and there. A few small lakes with sandy beaches, dot the area. Small individual white clouds float in an aquamarine sky. A huge rainbow arches across the sky, and touches the ground in the far distance. The only discordant feature, is a stone ridge to the east. Birds of all descriptions soar, dive and wheel in the air. Near the streams, clumps of flowers are host to numerous insects. The lakes and streams swirl with underwater activity. Dogs, cats, horses, and many other animals, dot the hills in massive numbers."

"I am always greeted by my best dogs, "Tippy," and "Bear," and after she died, "Sheba," but other dogs I have known and owned are also in the background, as is a doberman pinscher, whose story I will tell later. The three are my primary source of information. In my dreams, the animals have the ability to speak and understand. In the past, they have passed on information about pets who have died, recently died, or will die. (Their predictions are often general, so they cannot be used as a barometer of accuracy, or truth.) "We are preparing for a special dog." (A special dog is always dying.)"

"Other times, the dreams have had a different element. The doberman story is once such. In that dream, I am shown the other side of the discordant ridge. A rugged, steep slope, on the other side, leads down to a very deep valley system (made the Grand Canyon look shallow.) There is little water at the bottom, and it is harsh, alkaline, and hot. At the bottom of the canyon, are those animals that had been taught to fight, and who came to enjoy inflicting pain on others. In this area, they are doomed to fight for however long it takes for them to learn better. On the sides of the steep slope, are those who have realized the error in their ways, and are struggling to reach the meadowlands. It is not an easy task. The slope is steep and treacherous. Those that have not learned their lesson, will run up and try to drag them back into the fray. As I was shown this, I saw the doberman. He was exhausted, at the end of his rope, and just short of the top. No strength to continue, but desperately not wanting to go back down. The doberman was skinny beyond belief, and his hide was ragged. He was covered with oozing sores, and his lips were drawn back from mean looking teeth, in some unknown emotion. I looked down at him, and into his eyes, and saw the despair in them. My heart went out to him, and without thinking, I reached over the lip, and grabbed him by the scruff of the neck. He was heavier than I thought, and the action caused his grip to slip, and he began to slide down. I felt myself slipping over the edge with him, but I refused to let go. I yelled at "Tippy" and "Bear" to help me, but they yelled back, "let go, he has to do it on his own!" Something inside me would not let him slide back, and I somehow managed to pull back, while still holding onto him, until we were both over the lip. Then, I picked him up, and carried him to the nearest brook, where he lapped up the water as if trying to dry the entire creek. As he drank, his sides filled out, the sores closed over, and healed without scars, and his coat became shiny and beautiful. In fact, he was the most beautiful doberman I have ever seen. As I was marveling at him, a voice came from nowhere. "You were not supposed to help!" I looked around and saw no one, but answered, "he needed help, and I was there." The voice repeated itself, and again I answered, "I don't care, he needed help, and I was there." A third time, the voice repeated itself, and again I answered, "I don't care, and if I had to do it over again, I would." The voice seemed satisfied with that, then spoke to the doberman. "I have a job for you, will you do it?" The doberman answered "yes." When he did, all the dogs around began capering around, but the doberman disappeared. "Where did he go?" I asked. "To do a job for me, he has passed the test," the voice answered."

"Most recently, they have been guiding me throughout the Rainbow Bridge land, and showing me its true scope. Each time, I have soared over the Rainbow Bridge, and looked down on it. It is huge. There are mountains, oceans deserts, savannah, and rain forests. All kinds of animals going through some sort of preparation, before they pass over The Bridge. Each habitat seems to be full of the types that inhabit those places on earth. I saw large groups of lions, herds of deer, antelope and bison. Polar bears strode across massive fields of ice. Mountain goats leaped from rocky crag to rocky crag, with gleeful abandon, ignoring the steep drops below."

"The area of desolation and misery, is where the evil is bled out of those animals that were evil in life. Here too, there were all varieties of habitats, but these are blighted. The water in the lakes, rivers and seas, polluted and stinking. The deserts scoured by bitter winds, blasting the searing sand. The forests full of diseased trees, bearing sickly fruits. From them, came the distant cries of anger and pain. Only here, in this Bridge area, does pain and suffering exist. Only here, are disease and injury allowed, but there is no release of death. As we sailed back from that vast miserable land, I could see the small specks of individual animals fighting their way up the walls, and out of that place. Passing barriers like this, is the only way out of that area. The voice resonated in my mind..."it is not allowed."

"Finally, we returned to the area I was familiar with the most. The area where our companion animals wait for us. Here, to those that never knew love in life, played and gamboled with joyful abandon. At various places, people suddenly appeared, and their old companions rushed joyfully to meet them, and they are united again, and pass over The Bridge together. Occasionally, one person appears, and is joined by many animals. These often do not pass over The Bridge, but stay awhile, and get to know those animals that never knew love on earth. Making friends with them, letting them get to know the love they never knew before, and taking them with them, when they do pass over to the other side. In other cases, a lost human appears, and one of the lost animals goes to him or her. They too, linger for awhile, until the scars of their existence on earth are healed, and they are ready to pass to the other side. In most cases though, it is an old man or woman who appears, and is joyfully greeted by one, two or three loving companions. They greet each other tearfully, and in their joy, do not see the ravages of age and disease melt from them, and then they leave with each other happily, toward The Bridge, and other reunions, and whatever lays beyond."

Well, there you have it...somewhat differing perceptions of The Bridge, but not really...as it is seen as a truly beautiful place, where our pets await to be reunited with us, and they will be.

What Is Rainbow Bridge?

Midi, "When The Saints Go Marching In," is from Laura's Midi Heaven