Hi, my name is Sarah. I’d like to share my story about my dog Bruno and the stranger’s marvel that gave Bruno a new lease on life.
Bruno is a sweet, smart Labrador rescue. He has been my companion and best friend for the past decade, inciting playful jealousy from my husband on occasion. He has been the top employee of our army surplus store, greeting customers with a bark and wagging tail, and even escorting regular customers down the aisles.
Not long ago, I noticed that Bruno’s movement began to slow, his tail wagged less, and his excitement for life seemed to diminish. We took him to the vet and barraged him with a thousand questions. The vet gave some advice, recommended some nutritional changes, but also reminded us that he wasn’t a spry puppy anymore, and his active life had damaged his leg and hip joints.
Bruno’s playful energy seemed to have been sapped out of him.
WE TRIED EVERYTHING
Our hearts broke. The vet was right, Bruno wasn’t a puppy anymore. But he wasn’t THAT old, either. There had to be something I could do.
We literally tried everything we could think of…
- Supplements
- Medications
- Diets
- Swimming
- Heated dog bed
- Massage
- Almost called a “dog whisperer”
I was desperate. Nothing seemed to work.
After a while, we accepted her new state and did what we could to make him comfortable. He spent most of the day resting in his bed by the checkout stand, and on occasion when he rose to greet customers, it looked like a painful ordeal.
ONE DAY A STRANGER WALKED INTO THE STORE
On a Saturday morning, a man walked into our store, looking for drop cloths or something. I pointed him in the right direction as he stooped to greet Bruno in his bed. He painstakingly stood to show his approval of him scratching behind his ears.
Moments later, he returned to the counter with his items, but during the checkout process, his attention was on Bruno. He asked his age and about the stiffness. After I handed him the receipt, he thanked me and left the store. I thought that was the end of it.
BACK SO SOON?
Within two minutes the man stood in front of me again, this time holding a small white bottle in one hand and his business card in the other. He said he was the head of product development for a nutritional company that focused on pet health and longevity.
He then explained that he was returning from a conference, then handed me the bottle. It was a plain, white bottle with a white lid. On the label was written “PERNA-JS” in black marker. I looked up at him, skeptical.
He smiled and said, “Ignore the label. We haven’t thought of a name for it yet. But I think Bruno could use this.”
“I’ve tried them all, but thanks for the offer,” I said, handing back the bottle.
“Keep it. It’s not like other supplements. Trust me.” Then he turned and left.
NOTHING TO LOSE
By the time the door had closed behind the stranger, I had tossed both the bottle and the card in the wastebasket and returned to work. Hours later as I was emptying the trash, a thought occurred to me. What do I have to lose? I didn’t believe his new chews would help Bruno any more than the rest of the junk on pet supply store shelves. But he was nice and Bruno liked him…
So I popped open the bottle and tossed a chew to Bruno. He gobbled it up.
I continued giving Him a chew each morning. My husband teased me for feeding my dog a mystery chew from a stranger. But he teased me about everything, so, whatever.
A short time later, Mike, a regular customer walked in and greeted me and Bruno. Then he exclaimed, “Sarah, what have you done to Bruno? He’s looking great! I’ll have what He’s having!”
“Sarah, what have you done to Bruno? He’s looking great! I’ll have what He’s having!”
Bruno had hopped up and trotted to Mike, tail wagging furiously. He hadn’t done anything like that for months! Not only that, he continued on with Mike, escorting him through the store like a happy puppy.
THE CHANGE DUMBFOUNDED ME
After months of resigning myself to never seeing his playful energy again, I watched in disbelief. Then I looked at the white bottle and remembered the stranger. It was just another dumb supplement. Wasn’t it? No, it had to be something special because of what I was witnessing with my own eyes.
Then I remembered what I had done with his business card.
FINDING THE STRANGER AND THANKING HIM
I’m a law-abiding citizen, so I’m not sure if my next step broke any laws, but I had to find the stranger for two reasons: First, to thank him. Second, to buy more white bottles.
With his business card in a landfill and the gray bottle giving no clues except “PERNA-JS” all I knew was that he had purchased something. So I rummaged through past receipts and finally found his. He had paid with a credit card, and had therefore given me a signature. It was hard to read, but my husband and I came up with a few possible names. Then a few Google searches led us to a promising phone number, which I called and he answered.
His name was Chris, and yes, he remembered Bruno. He was glad to hear that the pills worked, but wasn’t surprised. He knew they’d work. He went on to explain that it worked to increase mobility and decrease joint pain for aging dogs, but that it also works as a preventive supplement for younger dogs, “In fact, I really recommend it be given to younger dogs to prevent the joint damage that begins when they’re young.”
“Thanks to Pupgrade, I have my sweet Bruno back again!”
I sincerely hope that my story helps you and your furry friend.
Take advantage of this discount while supplies last.
