The Passionate Calling Of Dog Rescue

Have you ever wondered what it takes to be a dog rescuer? There aren’t any job qualifications, any college degree requirements and certainly no experience needed to be a rescuer. What you’ll find instead is a passion that doesn’t just call out; it becomes the heartbeat of one’s life and identity.

Overwhelming compassion colored with empathy for God’s creatures is the hallmark of a canine rescuer. It burns as long as one has breath and reaches a merciful hand to those animals in need every single day of life.

“We do not have to wait for heaven to be surrounded by hope, love and joyfulness. It is here on earth and has four feet.” That’s the philosophy of animal rescuer, Marcella Dyer. She has spent a lifetime of loving, sheltering and assisting abandoned and/or abused dogs in need.

The Mosby Foundation had the honor of networking with Marcella and learning first hand of her lifelong devotion to dogs in need. She came to us with the dilemma of two abandoned dogs, 6-8 years old. Rumi, a Border Collie/Setter mix, and Spirit, a Corgi/Bassett/Pom mix. Both had heartworms and hookworms but Spirit was the more seriously ill of the two dogs.

With infections on his face and ears plus a perineal hernia, Spirit would strain when trying to eliminate. Frequently, Marcella would have to give him an enema before Spirit could properly move his bowels. Surgery was needed to correct the problem and that wasn’t cheap.

Marcella lives her life with faith as her compass. Although the odds were against her, she never gave up her desire to see Spirit have the surgery he needed. Even though she had her own dogs to care for, Marcella patiently took the time to help Spirit move his bowels. Even when she was sick with the flu, she drove Spirit two hours to see a veterinarian about recovering his health.

Through perseverance and prayer, Marcella did raise the money for Spirit’s surgery, and both dogs had the heartworm and hookworm treatments needed. The Mosby Foundation gladly assisted Marcella in reaching her financial goal. Rumi and Spirit are both wonderful dogs that deserve a second chance and we hope you’ll help them find the loving homes they so richly deserve.

But the story doesn’t end there. Marcella’s passion for rescuing dogs moves much like life itself. Just as there is an opening for the possibility of love for two dogs, there is closure for another. Marcella called the foundation, crushed, because of a dog she was forced to put down due to ill health. Marcella stayed with the dog until the very end, her heart broken because she did not reach him early enough to save his life.

An animal rescuer like Marcella perceives the world differently from a lot of folks. Her entire life breathes with an empathy that feels right through to the grief and heartache of dogs in need. And while that is a gift to us, it is often a burden to those that carry it. Marcella shelters her gift in a country setting in southwest Virginia. It’s here she finds the reserve to continue her work.

“And so you will find me surrounded by dogs, some looking for their forever home, some who have found it. (I choose) a patchwork of life that prefers walks in the woods, gardening, poetry, the songs of titmice, chickadees and finches, and hours by the fire with a good book—to the madness that has overtaken the world.”

The madness that has overtaken the world Spirit and Rumi have lived that madness, as well as the many other dogs Marcella has loved to good health. So has The Mosby Foundation. If you know of someone who would love to give Spirit and Rumi a good home, let us know. Stop the madness, embrace the love. (Please check our available dogs page for more information on Rumi and Spirit)

FOOD LION
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