Mary Steenburgen Shares the Incredible Story of the Dog That Changed Her Life — Twice

Mary Steenburgen says has had two canine earth angels to prove it! The first dog of the “Book Club” star’s dreams was Lucy, an Australian Shepherd/Queensland Heeler mix she rescued at the Humane Society.

“I was living with my two children in an old farmhouse in Ojai, a laid-back California town,” Mary recalls. “It didn’t take Lucy long to fit into our family. She decided her job was to watch over us, like any good herding dog.”

The canine “claimed certain spots — a particular section of the sofa, under the kitchen table, outside by the lavender,” Mary adds. “She snapped at bees and occasionally got stung.”

Lucy turned out to be a real lifesaver.

One day, Mary was lugging heavy grocery bags from her car when Lucy blocked her path and “started barking at me, forcing me to back up. That’s when I saw it. Right where I was about to step was an angry coiled rattlesnake.”

Then Mary met the man of her dreams … “Cheers” icon Ted Danson … and her four-legged guardian angel approved!

Remembers Mary, “Ted and Lucy fell madly in love.”

Sadly, that inevitable day came … it was time for this good dog to take the rainbow bridge.

“She sat down and looked at me, her gaze steady and serene, guiding me through this moment,” says Mary. “She was telling me, ‘It’s time to say goodbye.’”

Devastated by their loss, Mary, 72, and Ted, 77, took a trip to Todos Santos, Mexico, a few weeks later.

“One night the image of Lucy came to me in a dream, looking right at me,” Mary reveals. “I got a message: ‘You’ll meet your new dog tomorrow.’”

And she did — a scruffy, flea-infested terrier mix that was running with a street dog pack and was near starvation.

“She sat down and gave me a look that said, ‘I know you’ve come to get me. I’ve been waiting.’ She let me pick her up and I told her, ‘You’re coming home with us.’”

She named her Lulu in honor of Lucy.

“She was drawn to the exact places where Lucy used to hang out,” says Mary. “I’d find Lulu lying under the kitchen table, sleeping in that same spot on the sofa and outside by the lavender, snapping at the bees and sometimes getting stung.”

Like Lucy, “Lulu is very smart and loyal and watches over our family,” says Mary. “Lulu is great at letting me know how deeply I am loved.

“Of all the gifts our four-legged angels bring us, I think that may be the greatest of all.”