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Jeff Guidry and His Eagle Named Freedom

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This is the kind of story you need when it seems like the world is spiraling out of control?..

Not many people get a picture of this proud bird
snuggled up next to them!

Freedom and Jeff

Freedom and I have been together 11 years this summer.
She came in as a baby in 1998 with two broken wings.
Her left wing doesn't open all the way even after surgery,
it was broken in 4 places.
She's my baby.

When Freedom came in she could not stand
and both wings were broken. She was
emaciated and covered in lice. We made the
decision to give her a chance at life, so I took
her to the vet's office. From then
on, I was always around her. We had her in a
huge dog carrier with the top off, and it
was loaded up with shredded newspaper for her to
lay in. I used to sit and talk to her,
urging her to live, to fight; and she would lay
there looking at me with those big brown eyes.
We also had to tube feed her for weeks.

This went on for 4-6 weeks, and by then she still
couldn't stand. It got to the point where the
decision was made to euthanize her
if she couldn't stand in a week. You know you don't
want to cross that line between torture and
rehab, and it looked like death was
winning. She was going to be put
down that Friday, and I was supposed to come in
on that Thursday afternoon. I didn't want to go
to the center that Thursday, because I couldn't
bear the thought of her being euthanized;
but I went anyway, and when I walked in everyone
was grinning from ear to ear. I went
immediately back to her cage; and there she was,
standing on her own, a big beautiful
eagle. She was ready to live. I was
just about in tears by then. That
was a very good day.

We knew she could never fly, so the director
asked me to glove train her.
I got her used to the glove,
and then to jesses, and we started
doing education programs for schools
in western Washington .
We wound up in the newspapers,
radio (believe it or not) and some
TV. Miracle Pets even did a show
about us.

In the spring of 2000, I was diagnosed with
non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. I had stage 3,
which is not good (one major organ plus
everywhere), so I wound up doing 8 months of
chemo. Lost the hair - the whole
bit. I missed a lot of work. When I
felt good enough, I would go to Sarvey
and take Freedom out for walks. Freedom would
also come to me in my dreams and help me fight
the cancer. This happened time and time again.

Fast forward to November 2000

The day after Thanksgiving,
I went in for my last checkup.
I was told that if the cancer was not
all gone after 8 rounds of chemo, then my last
option was a stem cell transplant. Anyway, they
did the tests; and I had to come back Monday for
the results. I went in Monday, and I was
told that all the cancer was gone.

So the first thing I did was get up to Sarvey and
take the big girl out for a walk. It was misty
and cold. I went to her flight and jessed her
up, and we went out front to the top of the
hill. I hadn't said a word to
Freedom, but somehow she knew. She looked at me
and wrapped both
her wings around me to where I
could feel them pressing in on my back
(I was engulfed in eagle wings), and she
touched my nose with her beak and stared into my
eyes, and we just stood there like that
for I don't know how long . That was a
magic moment. We have been soul mates ever
since she came in. This is a very special bird.

On a side note: I have had people who
were sick come up to us when we are out, and
Freedom has some kind of hold on
them. I once had a guy who was
terminal come up to us and
I let him hold her.
His knees just about buckled and he
swore he could feel her power course through his
body. I have so many stories like that..

I never forget the honor I have of being so close
to such a magnificent spirit as
Freedom.

Hope you enjoyed this!
Cancer is a strange cell.
You can go along for years in remission
and then one day it pops its head up again.
If you ever have it you will never be free of it.

A SMALL REQUEST...

93% won't forward, but I'm Sure You Will.

A small request.....Just one line
All you are asked to do is keep this circulating.
Even if it's only to one more person.
In memory of anyone you know who has been
struck down by cancer or is still living with it
Or just someone who enjoys a GREAT STORY
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Comments

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mila71

TFS, this is an inspirational message I forwarded this to my son and daughter I also am a cancer survivor.

MissSadie

I have been fortunate enough to meet Jeff and Freedom at our local Relay for Life. An awesome, inspiring duo.

spiderchck

What a heartwarming story. This is the first I've heard of it, so thanks for posting it. I'm going to share it with my brother in memory of his wife lost to cancer three years ago.

ancienthippy

PAM YOUR SON IS BRAVE TO GO THROUGH THIS TWICE. THE HUMAN WILL TO SURVIVE AMAZES ME. I PRAY YOUR SON WILL HAVE A FULL RECOVERY. MY COUSIN - AT AGE 50 - WENT THROUGH COLON SURGERY AND CHEMO AND MADE A FULL RECOVERY. THERE IS HOPE. PEACE TO YOU AND YOURS.
PETSMOM YOU ARE WELCOME AND PEACE AND SUNSHINE TO YOU.
TEX THANKS FOR THE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. THERE ARE ALSO SEVERAL HEARTWARMING VIDEOS ON YOUTUBE WITH JEFF AND FREEDOM THAT ARE WELL WORTH WATCHING. PEACE MY FRIEND.
PEGGY THIS WAS MY FIRST READ AND IT SURE HIT MY HEART. PEACE FOR A BEAUTIFUL WEEKEND.
WOLF LADY THERE CERTAINLY ARE A LOT OF WONDERFUL PEOPLE AND ANIMALS IN THIS WORLD. MAY YOUR WEEKEND BE FILLED WITH LOVE AND PEACE.
PNP IT SEEMS TO BE NUMBER 1 IN MANY FAMILIES THESE DAYS. I AGREE WITH THE POWER OF OUR ANIMAL FRIENDS. YOUR PINK FACE ALWAYS MAKES ME SMILE AND FOR THAT I AM GRATEFUL. PEACE.

pinknblack

What an inspiring story. Cancer has been the number 1 killer in my family. I believe you kind find healing in other creatures and humans. I think we are more powerful than we give ourselves credit for. Just look how easy it is to forgive when someone makes you smile or laugh. Thank you for sharing and peace, AH

wolflady

Wonderful story, read about it some years ago. Its nice to see it again, and remind
us of all the good people out there helping the animals.

peggysuss

Thank you so much. I`ve seen this a few years ago and its nice to re-read & remember this wonderful story.

texasstar7

I have read this before and loved it, it is so uplifting. In case some don't believe, I ran it through Snopes (because there are always naysayers on the Jig), and Snopes says it's true. Here's the link:
http://www.snopes.com/photos/animals/freedom.asp
Just in case anyone wants to see it. Thanks for the post, AH, great to read it again.

petsmom

What a beautiful, inspiring story. Thank you so much, hippy.

I forwarded this picture and story to my son, who just finished chemo for a second go-round with colon cancer. His first job was in an animal shelter, and he has a real soft spot for wounded souls - human or animal. Thank you for sharing this.

ancienthippy

I RECEIVED THIS EMAIL TODAY AND THOUGHT MY JIGID FRIENDS MIGHT ENJOY THIS OUTSTANDING PHOTOGRAPH AND THE AMAZING STORY THAT GOES WITH IT. LET FREEDOM RING AND MAY PEACE FLY WITH YOU ON THE SPIRIT WINGS OF AN EAGLE.

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