Today we are asking for all our staff, volunteers, followers, and supporters to help us pray for Hobbes as he undergoes a very urgent surgery tomorrow.
Our promise to Hobbes is to help him heal both physically and emotionally so he can live out his final years knowing what it is truly like to be loved, and that not all humans are unkind. For him and dogs of his kind, Paws Give Me Purpose Sanctuary is the real start of a life he never had. Blind and deaf, Hobbes has endured a life of extreme criminal neglect. Until now he has lived a life of silence and darkness, without anyone to care for him or give him a warm loving touch.
In order to give Hobbes the best life possible, he requires surgery to repair his severely damaged gums. Although he barely has any teeth, his gums and jaw are severely infected and he has 2 fistulas in need of urgent repair. For those not familiar, a fistula is characterized as an abnormal passageway between two openings, hollow organs, or cavities. They occur as a result of injury, infection, or disease.
When Hobbes tries to eat, and it is difficult, food gets stuck in the fistulas causing him to paw at the areas which makes them bleed more. He is extremely uncomfortable and in pain. The surgery is necessary to prevent food and water from passing from the mouth into the nasal cavity. If this should occur, it will cause irritation of the nose, runny nose, inflammation of the sinuses, infection, and possibly pneumonia.
Since Hobbes’ arrival, he does not sleep well at night and paces around his room. A staff member has been sleeping on the floor next to him and his brother Calvin every night since their arrival in order to comfort him. We can only imagine how he lived in that house of horrors, and understand his fear; he needs someone by his side to make him feel safe.
Any dog that requires surgery worries us, but at 20 years of age, Hobbes’s surgery is more risky and sadly there is a likelihood the procedure may fail and the fistulas will not stay closed afterward. After weighing all the options and lengthy discussions with our Veterinarian, this is really something that needs to be done in order for Hobbes to live a healthy and happy life.
A complete blood profile was conducted, including a chemical blood profile, a complete blood count, a urinalysis, and an electrolyte panel. Considering Hobbes’s age and condition, everything came back looking good and the Veterinarian has no major concerns.
This surgery, on top of the already enormous medical bills we incur on a regular basis will be costly, but Hobbes’s life is worth every penny! He deserves to be taken care of, loved and spoiled in his senior years.
This coming Tuesday, May 5, 2020 is #GivingTuesdayNow, a global day of giving as an emergency response to the unprecedented need caused by COVID-19.
All funds raised from our #GivingTuesdayNow campaign will go directly to our medical fund to help us continue our mission and care for our Sanctuary residents, even while most of the world is on lock down. The reality is that our expenses greatly outweigh the donations we receive, and we need your help to supply the dogs here in Sanctuary necessary care and life-saving medications. Please help us continue our fight.
We ask that you please consider making a life-saving donation on Tuesday May 5, so we can keep our promise to give Hobbes and the rest of our Sanctuary residents a safe and loving environment for the rest of their lives.
If anyone is interested in sponsoring Hobbes lifetime care in Sanctuary, please reach out to us directly.
