Fernando the mailman has always loved dogs. And one dog on his route formed an especially close connection with him.

Usually, mailmen and German Shepherds don’t mix. The dogs can be fearsome and protective of their homes. And mailmen, as part of their job, have to cross into these dogs’ territories. But Fernando and Gretchen were different.

Fernando would look forward to meeting Gretchen every morning. For Fernando, playing with the dog would be the highlight of his day. And clearly, Gretchen loved playing with him. In fact, she would look out of the window, awaiting Fernando’s arrival every morning.

And on most days, Fernando would give Gretchen some treats as a thank you for being so playful.

But then one day, something devastating happened.

Fernando arrived at Gretchen’s home to find that she wasn’t there. The mailman was confused, but then he found a heartbreaking note attached to the mailbox.

Gretchen’s owner had written the note. He explained that Gretchen had sadly passed away yesterday. The owner thanked Fernando for playing with Gretchen every day. He also asked if Fernando could give some of Gretchen’s treats to the other dogs on his route.

By now, Fernando was crying. He loved Gretchen and knew that there would be a big hole in his life.

Fernando did what Gretchen’s owners asked of him. Every single dog on his route got a treat from Gretchen that day. It was the least he could do to honor an animal he had adored.

When Fernando got back to his family in the evening, he was still devastated.

Fernando’s daughter had already heard about Gretchen. As soon as Fernando heard the news, he had text her. But the daughter had a surprise for Fernando.

She had posted the text and photo of the letter from Gretchen’s owner onto Twitter. And people online were touched by the story. Hundreds of thousands of people had reacted to it.

To date, the post had managed to gain over 180,000 retweets, 854,000 likes and thousands of comments.

People said things like this:

One of the people who had seen this post was Gretchen’s owner. He left his own emotional comment on the post:

Fernando still felt bad, but when he saw that his pain was shared by people online, it helped a lot. He also had proof from the animal’s owner that he had made Gretchen’s life happier.

This just shows how easy it is to make a difference to others, whether they’re humans or dogs. If you treat others kindly, then it will mean the world to them.

At the end of the day, everyone’s time on Earth is limited. People can choose to live their lives like Fernando does, by being friendly and inspiring to others, or they can cause upset and negativity.

If only everyone were like Fernando.

Gretchen’s owner also revealed that the dog had been a senior animal when they had adopted her.

He said that he hoped Gretchen and Fernando’s story would inspire other people to adopt older shelter dogs, as these animals often struggle to find a home.

In a few months, Gretchen’s owners went to the shelter and took in another senior dog.

They wanted to give another animal the opportunity that Gretchen had had.

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Source: Inspiremore