Hope Lives On
Vermillion, Ohio

“The animals we take in are the ones no one else would have because of age or illness. We take them into our home and we take them into our hearts…they will know what it feels like to be loved.”

Those are the words of Deborah Parker, founder of Saint Francis Animal Sanctuary in Vermilion, Ohio. Located on 30 serene acres, Deborah has created a beauty that reflects the total love in her being for severely abused animals. It is work reserved for a precious few tender hearts with nerves of steel.

“No matter what abuse or neglect they came from, they will know the touch of a human hand is not always rough. They will know what it feels like to be loved.”
Deborah Parker
Saint Francis Animal Sanctuary

Hope, a female Lab mix from Scioto County Pound, is one such case. A complaint came into the pound about a dog crawling around under a trailer. When the local pound found Hope she was missing her front leg and her rear end was paralyzed. Seeking shelter under the trailer, Hope was terrified.

She was also starving to death. She ate what she could find, mostly animal feces. By the time she got to the pound, her condition was so debilitated that she could not eat or relieve herself. The pain was just too great. For nine days, waiting her turn to be euthanized, Hope languished in this condition until Saint Francis found her.

Her front leg was a botched amputation, but that was the least of her problems. Surgery revealed a bladder the size of a grapefruit with no muscle tone. She also had two tumors on her spleen, which were biopsied.

The vet removed two pounds of fecal material that looked like cat litter and cat feces. And still he could not get it all. Surgery of the bowel was performed and two pounds of material resembling horse manure was removed. Hope also lost four inches of large intestine.

The results of the spleen biopsy showed Hope has Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a malignant cancer that involves the lymphoid system.

Remember, this dog is only about two years old. Can you imagine living, much less surviving, such abuse? We can’t either. And the obvious question is, why try to save her?

Deborah Parker answers the question this way: “Some people have expressed opinions as to why we spend so much money on one dog when we could have saved so many more. That is what we do at Saint Francis…we take the ones that no one else would have. The ones that would never have a chance at adoption or rescue.”

Hope seems to have fully recovered from her bowel resection surgery. She happily plays with the other crippled dogs, and is content to sleep with the Saint Bernard in the kitchen. Happy and loved, Hope’s quad wheelchair has allowed her semblance of a normal life.

None of us ever knows how long we have on this earth. And yes, Hope’s days are numbered. But the quality of her life is rich. Before she passes from this earth she will have lived the last part of it loved.

And that’s why The Mosby Foundation made a donation to Saint Francis Sanctuary on behalf of Hope. When you look into the eyes of your beloved pet, what do you see? Trust, love, loyalty.

Now Hope has that, too.