This is different for me in that this experience was with my dog, Bud. He was a 14 year-old pit bull mix who I rescued from a parking lot. The sweetest boy. He was deformed in the back legs and as he got older I knew arthritis was becoming a big problem for him. I waited until I felt it was not fair to him before making the very difficult call and had a vet come to the house. He went to sleep with me holding him, crying into his fur on his head and telling him how much I loved him. I told him he could go and run free now, that he would have the biggest yard to run in and be happy and healthy again. He had been gone five days and I was still cleaning up his hair around the house.

It was the day before mother's day and I was wondering if he could actually give me a sign and wondered if I would recognize it if he did. I knew it couldn't be hair on the floor or something dog-related because I still have two dogs and two cats. Outside my door is a small yard the animals use. There is also a garden in that yard which the dogs have always gotten into and I always have told them to GET OUT!!! Well there is a rose bush that has never bloomed. EVER. This house is from 1930. I have lived here since the early 1990s. I have tried to kill the rose bush since it is off the root ball and has never bloomed. Its simply too stuck in the ground to come out. I've cut it down numerous times. If this wasn't such perfect timing I might have missed it. But on the day before mother's day when I let the other dogs out I thought of all the times I had let Bud out and how he looked as he went down the ramp I built for him. The dogs immediately ran into the small garden space to relieve themselves. I told them to get out, as usual. They have a yard they can use. Then something red caught my eye. I went and got my glasses and came back out...there was the old half dead rose bush - literally covered in at least 30 BUDS! Not blooms yet, but BUDs. Since that was his name I just knew it was him. No other explanation makes sense to me. I had such joy in that moment - thinking how wonderful it was to get a sign from Bud. A clever sign. One I knew immediately! The very next day there was one single red bloom - The first thing I saw on Mother's Day upon going outside...The rest were still Buds. I will cherish that sign forever.

Was this experience difficult to express in words? No

Did you ONLY sense an awareness of presence of the deceased without actually seeing, hearing, feeling or smelling them? Yes

Did you hear the deceased or hear something associated with the deceased? No

Did you feel a touch or experience any physical contact from the deceased? No

Did you see the deceased? No

Did you smell a distinct smell, scent, fragrance or odor associated with the deceased? No

How long did the experience last? The rose has continued to bloom.

Was the beginning and end of the experience gradual or more sudden? Gradual as the roses have died off.

Could you sense the emotions or mood of the deceased? Yes

He seemed or felt happy, running and sniffing around like a happy, normal dog.

Did the deceased give you information you did not previously know? The only information I got from this experience is that pets have the ability to contact us and give us signs after they cross, it doesn't matter if they were a pet and not a person.

How do you currently view the reality of your experience? Experience was definitely real

Please explain why you view the reality of your experience as real or not real: It has never bloomed in the time I have lived here - 1992 until now. I have done everything I can to get rid of it because it is diseased, half dead and looks long and spindly with discolored leaves.

Was the experience dream like in any way? No

Describe in detail your feelings/emotions during the experience: I was reflecting on Bud, his passing, knowing I did everything I could to make it peaceful. He was always afraid of everything and so I had been as careful as I could to create a peaceful, loving experience. All of these things were in my mind and I was picturing him in the yard the way he used to be, missing him. Not grieving hard, but feeling emotional because even though I was so terribly sad there was nothing I would have changed about the experience and could not have let him go any longer. I was thinking only of Bud at the time of the experience and actually thinking of what kind of sign a dog could possibly give to someone.

Was there any emotional healing in any way following the experience? Yes

I felt better because I know Bud is all better and happy. Free from his pain.

What was the best and worst part of your experience? The best was that I had the experience and recognized it. The worst was that Bud is not physically here and I may not get more signs from him.

Has your life changed specifically as a result of your experience? No

Did you have any changes of attitudes or beliefs following the experience? No

Did the experience give you any spiritual understandings such as life, death, afterlife, God, etc.? Yes That animals can communicate just like people. They can impress their feelings on us too, to let us know they are ok and happy.

Death Compacts are when two or more living people promise among themselves that whoever dies first will try to contact the other(s). Have you ever made such a compact? No

Did you observe or hear anything regarding people or events during your experience that could be verified later? Yes I have a friend who remembered the rose never bloomed and also had tried to help me get rid of it many times. She is also a master gardener and told me the rose would never bloom.

What emotions did you feel during the experience? Happiness, but also irritation that others were so closed minded.

Was the experience witnessed or experienced by others? Yes

After I told others about it I insisted they come out and see what I was referring to

Did you have any sense of altered space or time? No

Did you have a sense of knowing, special knowledge, universal order and/or purpose? No

Did you become aware of future events? No

Did you have any psychic, paranormal or other special gifts following the experience that you did not have prior to the experience? No

Did you experience a separation of your consciousness from your body? No

Did you meet or see any other beings other than the deceased? No

Did you see a light? No

Did any part of your experience seem to occur in a place other than the location described above? No

Have you shared this experience with others?

Yes Most were skeptical. Others were polite and just said "that's really nice." A couple were very moved by my experience and happy to hear about it.

Have you shared this experience formally or informally with any other researcher or web site? No

Is there anything else you would like to add regarding your experience? No, nothing now.

Were there any associated medications or substances with the potential to affect the experience? No

Following the experience, have you had any other events in your life, medications or substances which reproduced any part of the experience? No

Did you ever in your life have a near-death experience, out of body experience or other spiritual event? No

Did the questions asked and information you provided accurately and comprehensively describe your experience? Yes