Bella, a Pekingese-Pomeranian shelter dog, helped Lisa Ison stay positive through a back injury, a divorce and getting laid off.
Last weekend, Bella almost died after eating part of a ham bone and would not have survived without help from two good Samaritans.
After examining Bella, a veterinarian at Alameda East Veterinary Hospital told Ison that saving Bella would cost at least $900 for half the treatment.
“I live paycheck to paycheck, and I didn’t have it. I was hysterical. I was crying,” Ison said.
A middle-age couple in the lobby was watching.
“I went to the bathroom and when I came back they hugged me goodbye and they said, ‘We’re gonna help you, don’t worry about it.’ ”
The bill was paid.
“For those folks to be there at that very moment is a miracle, a gift from God,” Ison said.
Ison is working on a payment plan for the other half of the bill, and Bella is recovering.
The good Samaritans declined to be interviewed.
