During the recent rains I found myself at the East Valley animal shelter. I had seen a dog online and wanted to see him in person. I do a lot of rescue work and he seemed really cute and adoptable but I couldn’t find him at the shelter. I asked the workers who told me that he had two broken legs and was in the medical holding area. I asked to see him, he was laying there with two broken legs and a broken hip and he lifted his head up and kissed my hand and my face. I thought how sad it was that this perfectly good, sweet, loving dog was more than likely going to be put to sleep. Who would adopt a dog that needed such medical care and possibly surgery. I went home.

I thought about Quark all night, I woke up at 5 am and thought about him some more. By 9 am I couldn’t get him out of my head so I made some calls to some of my animal loving friends to see if anyone would be willing to donate money toward his medical care. I was laid off a year ago and am living on unemployment and I knew I just didn’t have the funds available to give this guy the medical attention that he needed. I posted it on facebook. People started donating, actress and animal lover Janeane Garofalo donated a sizable chunk on the spot.

I went to the shelter, picked up Quark and took him straight to the vet. The news wasn’t good, he was going to need surgery. Pins to help hold his broken hip in place. “Go for it” I told the animal hospital and I put it on my credit card. I’m still working toward coming up with the rest to cover the $2800 medical bill but I’m confident that we are going to make it. People have been so kind. I feel bad asking for money to save a dog with all the suffering in Haiti, but you know what, this little guy needs help too. He’s a very happy go lucky guy.

Nothing slows him down, not the stitches in his left leg and not the cast on his right leg. He runs around my apartment as if he hasn’t a care in the world and I’m glad. He has no idea how close he came to being one of the hundreds of thousands of animals put to sleep in American Animal Shelters every year. Now he’s a different kind of statistic. He’s one of the ones that got saved. After he heals my friends at the Animal Advocates Alliance have offered to help me find him a good home which should be no problem. He’s full of kisses and just wants someone he can follow around and lay on the sofa with. He’s a happy/sad reminder of what happens to so many animals every day in our animal shelters… except his story will have a happy ending. I’m going to personally make sure that happens.