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Woman who tried to return unused pet food after dog’s death receives surprise delivery

When Anna Brose and her husband returned home to Wisconsin after visiting family in Alaska last month, their beloved Gus had crossed the Rainbow Bridge.

“We came back from our trip, and he was just gone,” Brose, 28, told The Washington Post.

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As Brose grieved her good boy, a chocolate lab-German short-haired pointer mix, she contacted Chewy, the online retailer from whom she had purchased Gus’s prescription dog food, asking if she could return the unopened package.

The rest is Twitter history. Not only did the company give Brose a full refund and suggest she donate the food in Gus’s name, but the company also sent along a little something special.

On Wednesday, Brose shared the following:

Her tweet has since gone viral, leading Brose to follow up with a sweet photo of Gus and her heartfelt thanks for the company’s compassion.

Chewy, of course, replied:

According to the Post, Brose and her husband rescued Gus from a shelter in Billings, Montana, when he was about 3 years old in 2017.

Chewy’s compassion and generosity for grieving pet owners is a longstanding practice that has, most notably, attracted the attention of animal shelters nationwide, “Today” reported.

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One shelter worker wrote in a response to Brose’s tweet: “I work at an animal shelter. This is legit. We often have people reaching out to donate because Chewy told them to reach out to a local shelter. I can’t express what this means to shelters like mine. Truly a gift.”

Andrew Stein, senior director for customer service at Chewy, told “Today” that “showing up for our customers during important milestones in their pet parenting journey is core to our DNA.”

“For many customers, their pet is a primary companion in life, and when they lose their fur baby, they may feel alone and in need of someone to lean on. In those moments, they understand that Chewy is also part of their family, and they are so grateful,” he added.

Brose told the Post that Chewy’s actions spoke volumes.

“It meant a lot that someone else knew about Gus and cared that he was gone,” she told the newspaper, adding, “The kindness that Chewy and Twitter have shown since then, it has kind of restored my faith in humanity a little bit.”

Learn more about Gus in The Washington Post’s complete report.