Hope – April 2023

Hope was an amazing girl.  Calm, quiet, and rather shy until she got to know you, she was accepted instantly by all of our resident dogs.

She took to her K9 walking cart like a duck to water.  She loved going on her walks; She stood so tall and proud in her cart. She was alert and curious to everything she saw – and smelled – on her walks.  She used to scoot over to me – foster momma – in the living room and sit herself in my lap, waiting excitedly for her turn for a walk with foster daddy when he returned from walking our resident dogs.

She loved meal and snack times, and was so patient and quiet while she waited to eat.  She would scoot herself from her bed in the living room and sit herself so she had a direct view into the dining room, and a little peek at foster momma in the kitchen while I prepared the food.

She liked to play with toys!  We were surprised at this, I guess because her mobility was so limited, but nonetheless delighted.  The first time I brought out the toy basket, she immediately scooted over to it and chose a toy, and then scooted back to her bed and began to chew on it.  It was a joy to watch her so animated with her favorite toys.

These are just a few memories of our sweet Hope.  We knew with her advanced Degenerative Myelopathy and the tumors she had, that we wouldn’t have her for long, we just didn’t know how long “long” would be.  She lived and we believe enjoyed life really until just a few days before we had to say goodbye.  It was very sudden, her turn for the worse.  One day, that spark in her was just gone, and we could see the change in her health – not just with what we saw outwardly, but her decline also shown in her eyes.

We loved Hope the minute we saw her, and miss her kind and gentle presence.  We are so grateful we were able to give Hope – and receive from her – 43 days of unconditional love.  We will never forget her.