Our hearts break for Esther the Wonder Pig and her family, who had to say goodbye to their dog Shelby this week. But we happen to know she’s already settled on the other side of the Rainbow Bridge and doing well. Our own sweet boys Jimmy and Joey crossed the bridge several years ago (Jimmy in spring 2003; Joey in spring 2015) and they keep us up to date about their lives there. They were part of the Welcoming Committee that greeted Shelby and sent us a little report.

Dear Stephanie & Todd,
It’s been busy here as we prepared to greet a newcomer. We got word that a celebrity dog was crossing the Rainbow Bridge and we wanted to make everything just right for the new arrival.

To do that, we first had to learn more about her. Right before any animal crosses the Rainbow Bridge, one of the cats who works on the Welcoming Committee puts its paperwork together. (Did you know most cats can read and write? It’s why they always want to sit on your laptop while you work. You thought it was for attention, but really they are checking your grammar and making sure you don’t write something dumb in an email to your boss. And those “naps” they take in the pages of your book? They’re critiquing your taste in novels.)

Anyway, the paperwork gives us the newcomer’s background—family history, likes, dislikes, hobbies—so we can get them settled in and make them feel welcome. We know the file is finished when the cat in charge scratches her signature into it, pushes all the pages onto the floor and walks away.

Then a beagle with a big bark everyone can hear (so any beagle who’s available at the time) announces all the important details to the rest of us. The beagle told us our new dog friend’s name is Shelby and that she’d lived a good, long life (18 years!). She came to us from a loving pack that included not only two dads, but also dog friends named Reuben and Alice and cat friends named Finnegan and Delores. While we were listening, Joey and I thought we might know Shelby. Something about her sounded familiar.
Then the beagle continued: Shelby’s pack also included a turkey named Cornelius (unusual!) and her very best friend, a world-famous pig named Esther (very unusual!). They all lived together at a magical-sounding place called Happily Ever Esther Farm Sanctuary

That was it! Joey and I hadn’t met Shelby but we knew her. While watching episodes of Belcher TV, we had seen Todd paint two portraits of Esther and Shelby. (Remember? We’ve told you before that we have channel 740, where Joey and I can watch everything happening with our Belcher pack—Todd and Stephanie, the best people ever, and our terrier pal Freddie. To us, it’s the most interesting thing on TV!)

Anyway, we ran over to the head of the Welcoming Committee, our old pal Zoey, a border collie who is very organized, and told her all about the paintings and suggested we should hang them in Shelby’s new house to make her feel at home here. Of course, Zoey thought it was a perfect idea! While Joey and I worked on that project, other animals got together a welcome basket for Shelby with all her favorite things, including fuzzy tennis balls.

We had heard that Shelby is an excellent mother to all kinds of animals, so the team of shepherds who help sort everyone out thought she’d be happy living in a house with a few dogs, cats and even a potbellied pig who missed out on good mothering in their first lives. We set her up with a nice memory foam mattress like the one she shared with Esther and her own channel 8074 where she can keep watch on her pack back in Canada. Then Joey and I hung Todd’s paintings of her and Esther on her bedroom wall.

It took a lot of work to get everything ready for Shelby’s arrival, but we were happy to do it. After all, she’s a famous dog.

But here’s the thing: We do the same type of welcome for every animal who arrives, whether they have a world-famous pig sister with a million social media followers or they are a stray with no friends or family.

Every animal deserves to be treated with tenderness and respect, given everything they need to feel safe and happy. Animals don’t always get that in their first life—but we make sure they get it in on this side of the Rainbow Bridge. Here every animal is wanted. Every animal is well cared for. Every animal is loved.

Shelby hasn’t been here long, but we want Esther and her whole family to know she’s doing great. While taking a tour of the place, she asked if we have an Enchanted Forest and we weren’t sure what she meant. Then she explained: She and Esther had an Enchanted Forest where they would take long walks, talk about life and plant cupcake seeds. (In fact, Todd painted Shelby and Esther taking strolls in that very forest!)

“We’re sorry, Shelby,” we told her. “We don’t have an Enchanted Forest here.”

“No problem,” she said. “If some of you will help me, we can make one. I brought a few cupcake seeds along with me.”

Tail wags and doggy kisses!

Jimmy (and Joey)