INSPIRING: The Naidu family from Cato Manor has a dog that reminds us to give thanks
Vicky and Bernice Naidu share their special pet's talents in saying grace before every meal - because giving thanks is at the epicentre of everything in life...
It's obvious that prayer is the centre of many people's lives, especially during times like these where we need to hang onto hope and a higher power.
So when we saw this story, we were very much left with a sense of hope. Diesel is a family dog who says grace before every meal. The Naidu family from Bonela, Cato Manor have trained Diesel into being a part of prayer time before enjoying his meal.
"Fetching, skipping and handshakes are included in Diesel’s bag of many tricks, said Naidu, which is his daughter Devona’s doing." (IOL)
Devona is the daughter of Vicky and Bernice and is now teaching in China. Her dad shared that she taught many lessons to Diesel before leaving, many of which involved obedience.
Diesel was born with a skin allergy and was prescribed with medication from the veterinarian. Devona used prayer as a key part of his treatment plan from the time he was two months old.
Whenever we pray as a family, or with others, Diesel is there. So, I suppose he is used to being in the atmosphere of prayer.
Read more: Why pets can be good for you
The family welcomed Diesel into the family during a stressful and difficult time.
"We lost our beloved dog Mylo through cancer in January 2014. Mylo was nine years old at the time, which left us devastated. Just thinking about that episode makes me emotional." Naidu told IOL.
That's the thing about pets though, they always manage to bring us some sort of wisdom. They teach us a lot if we are just willing to listen and be open to learning from them.
After the family lost Mylo, Bernice vowed that she would never get another pet as this experience has taken a toll on her and the rest of the family. But the kids got together and conjured up a plan.
We were presented with Diesel somewhere in February 2014, but my wife insisted she wanted nothing to do with him. Diesel is an intelligent dog. He persisted with sleeping at Bernice’s bedside and she eventually warmed towards him. Now they have a close bond and whenever Bernice is gardening, Diesel is at her side.
On that note, we had to share this cool video of our favourites, Pongo and Benson.
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