Unlike most days at the Rainbow Bridge, this day dawned cold and
gray. All the recent arrivals at the Bridge did not know what to think, as
they had never seen such a day. But the animals who had been waiting longer
for their beloved people to accompany them across the Bridge knew what was
happening, and they began to gather at the pathway leading to the Bridge.
Soon an elderly dog came into view, head hung low and tail dragging.
He approached slowly, and though he showed no sign of injury or illness, he
was in great emotional pain. Unlike the animals gathered along the pathway,
he had not been restored to youth and vigor upon arriving at the Bridge. He
felt out of place, and wanted only to cross over and find happiness.

But as he approached the Bridge, his way was barred by an angel, who
apologized and explained that the tired and broken-spirited old dog could
not cross over. Only those animals accompanied by their people were allowed
to cross the Bridge. Having nobody, and with nowhere else to turn, the dog
trudged into the field in front of the Bridge. There he found others like
himself, elderly or infirm, sad and discouraged. Unlike the other animals
waiting to cross the Bridge, these animals were not running or playing.
They simply were lying in the grass, staring forlornly at the pathway across the
Rainbow Bridge. The old dog took his place among them, watching the
pathway and waiting, yet not knowing for what he was waiting.
One of the newer dogs at the Bridge asked a cat who had been there
longer to explain what was happening. The cat replied, “Those poor animals
were abandoned, turned away, or left at rescue places, but never found a
home on earth. They all passed on with only the love of a rescuer to comfort
them. Because they had no people to love them, they have nobody to escort
them across the Rainbow Bridge.”

The dog asked the cat, “So what will happen to those animals?”
Before the cat could answer, the clouds began to part and the cold turned to
bright sunshine. The cat replied, “Watch, and you will see.” In the distance
was a single person, and as he approached the Bridge the old, infirm and sad
animals in the field were bathed in a golden light. They were at once made
young and healthy, and stood to see what their fate would be. The animals
who had previously gathered at the pathway bowed their heads as the person
approached. At each bowed head, the person offered a scratch or hug.
One by one, the now youthful and healthy animals from the field fell
into line behind the person. Together, they walked across the Rainbow Bridge
to a future of happiness and unquestioned love. The dog asked the cat, “What
just happened?”

The cat responded, “That was a rescuer. The animals gathered along
the pathway bowing in respect were those who had found their forever homes
because of rescuers. They will cross over when their people arrive at the
Bridge. The arrival here of a rescuer is a great and solemn event, and as a
tribute they are permitted to perform one final act of rescue. They are
allowed to escort all those poor animals they couldn’t place
on earth across the Rainbow Bridge.”

The dog thought for a moment, then said, “I like rescuers.” The cat
smiled and replied, “So does heaven, my friend. So does heaven.”