OH! S.N.A.P. Spay. Neuter. Adopt. Protect.

Deborah Stone and her dog (Photo provided)

The Love of Animals. Taken One Step Further.

If you’ve ever had a pet that became terminally ill, you know how painful it can be…watching your beloved friend diminish and die, sometimes being forced to choose humane euthanasia to end its suffering,

Imagine choosing to take in an animal that’s already near death’s door. This is an act of selfless caring and love. And it’s one more way that rescue group fosters make this world a better place.

Betsy Duer is Co-President of Animal Allies Rescue Foundation (AARF), a rescue organization that pulls animals from Baltimore area shelters, places them with foster parents, and ultimately finds them homes.

Some of these animals need extensive medical care. Some unfortunately, cannot be healed. And that’s when AARF’s special fosters come into play.

Says Betsy, “We know going in that our job is just to make them confortable, find them love, and provide a warm place for them to stay for the rest of their life.”

Wanda Mayhew is an AARF volunteer who fosters many cats, including those in hospice. Right now, she’s giving end of life care to a cat named Palmer.

Palmer is about 8 years old, but looks much older. He’s been diagnosed with intestinal lymphoma, and may only have months to live. The condition, she explains, does not cause him pain.

“I just don’t think he’s ready to go yet,” she says. I don’t want him to be euthanized when he can have some happiness in his life.”

Another AARF foster, Liane Robinson, has two rescue dogs but also fosters for AARF. She particularly loves senior pets, and didn’t blink when asked to foster Duster, a dog with a terminal illness.

Duster has Cushing’s Disease and liver cancer and probably has about a year to live. Liane keeps him comfortable and happy.

“This is not an easy undertaking, no,” she admits. But day after day, she gives Duster love, and will be there till the end.

To meet these two extraordinary women and their hospice pets is a powerful experience. They take each day as it comes, with love in their hearts, and an acceptance that death is a part of life.

If you would like to meet them, just watch this short video.

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