The following stories are written by Denise Holcomb and are true accounts of her experiences at All God's Creatures.

Dear Friends of All God’s Creatures,

I sit in my living room this muggy August evening and I keep thinking about the recent national news story concerning dog fighting. I’m trying to comprehend just why anyone would do or be involved in, such a cruel activity. To think that making a creature that was put here to help us, comfort us and love us, fight until maimed or dead, is going on in our country and even our own state, is incomprehensible.

To try and excuse these actions as anything less than cruel, heartless and being egotistical, is also absurd. These animals are not born mean or vicious. They are a product of inhumane and ignorant people.

To have such a heartless consideration for a life, whether it is four-legged or not, is more than I can absorb. A so called sport, that involves a trusting, caring, completely dependent creature, is the ultimate betrayal of responsibility and trustworthiness given to us, as caretakers of dependent lives.

Please, please, think before ever considering that this activity is remotely acceptable in our society and in the eyes of the one who created both human and animal.

Sincerely,

Denise Lee Holcomb, Founder, All God’s Creatures

The phone rings, the voice on the other end is shaking and somewhat winded. She has found a dog on the side of the road, too weak to run and obviously in need of help. I told her I would meet her at the vet's office. I walk into the waiting room, I see a fairly large dog consisting of bones (you could see his whole skeleton) covered with a short coat of hair. His eyes are infected and his hip had been knocked out of the socket (the hip was an old injury). He was so weak and looked at me as if to say, "I just want to rest". Once the vet started the exam, I knew it wasn't going to be good. The dog was in the last stages of heartworm disease, too weak for treatment and his injured hip was a constant source of pain.

Needless to say, his life had been full of suffering, but, to know that his last few minutes of life were spent in comfort and being touched and talked to in the kindest way, was all I could give him.

The next day I met someone at the vet's office to get a dog that has been abandoned by her owners. You see, they moved a week ago, their pet was left chained to a car, no shelter but a bush. Food and water were scarce. She was very thin and had never been given vaccinations, preventative medications or spayed.

The solution for these owners was to have someone come by to take the car and turn the dog loose to survive on her own. Thank goodness, a neighbor came over and said they would take the dog. That's where All God's Creatures comes in. I'm on my way to meet that kind neighbor and get the dog. Hopefully, she will have a chance for a good, new life, in a loving home. These days make all the rest worth while.

"MAYA"

"CLEMSON"

Every day in the life of All God's Creatures brings happiness and sometimes disbelief. This was one of those "disbelief" days.  A good Samaritan came upon a tiny, orange kitten in the road, dazed and obviously injured. He wrapped it in a towel, then headed for All God's Creatures. The kitten's nose was like raw meat, his tiny bottom looked the same. The damage looked like "road burn". This type of injury would be caused by throwing the animal out of a vehicle while still moving. Once I got him to the vet, he confirmed what we felt like had caused the injuries. "Clemson" is now doing great and is ready for a home that will love, care for and protect him. The disbelief is that anyone could do that to another living thing. The happiness is that the resilience and ability for forgiveness these animals have is nothing short of miraculous.

"GRANDPA"

Today I received a call from a man who had found a dog in a mud puddle on a dirt road. The caller said the dog was in pitiful shape and seemed to be injured. He had a blue collar on, but no id tag. His eyes were matted, one of his ears was swollen bigger than a golf ball, and he was limping on both back legs. After a heartworm test, (which was negative) I had to decide if he was salvageable. His eyes are cloudy, he can't hear it thunder, and a claw on each back foot had been pulled completely out causing both feet to swell and producing a very bad limp. Through all of this, "Grandpa" (probably 8-10 years old) has remained friendly and grateful. We gave him a bath and a haircut and vaccinated him. Later we put a drainage tube in one ear to help with an infection.        Now "Grandpa" is with us and is settling in. He already knows how to use the pet door, and is obviously housetrained. He is so sweet and will follow you anywhere. I can't imagine losing or giving up such a precious, sweet dog. So far, noone has called looking for him, so for now "Grandpa" will be part of our family for as long as he wants.          Please consider micro-chipping your pet or keeping id tags on your pet's collar so if this should happen to him or her, we can get them back home to you.