Dragging her severed leg, Faith pulled herself up the steep hill, inch by inch, in the beating rain, with thunder constantly startling her. The climb was harder because she was carrying puppies inside. Maybe the puppies were Faith’s reason for trying, when other dogs, or any creatures, would have given up.

Through the climb, Faith’s leg, attached only by skin, was excruciating, but most other parts of Faith hurt, too. That included her heart. Faith’s owner had shoved her out of a vehicle onto a road in the most remote location that the owner could find. Whether Faith’s leg was destroyed before or after that, no one knows.

Yet, Faith still believed in people and their love of dogs. Climbing, Faith probably kept looking back down the hill, at the road, just in case her owner came back. But Faith continued climbing, toward the only hope in view, a light from the sole human home around.

The woman in that house saw a dog hobbling across her yard to a brush pile. She went there and saw Faith, collapsed, obviously very injured. She put cardboard over the dog, trying to protect her from some of the relentless rain. Then she called the shelter.

When the shelter staff members arrived, Faith looked into their eyes. That’s when she received her name. Faith allowed one of them to lift her, even though it must have added to her pain. They took Faith straight to the Grant County Veterinary Clinic and contacted the Friends of the Shelter, asking if the group would cover the cost of amputating Faith’s leg. Thanks to donations from kind, caring people, the Friends of the Shelter was able to help Faith.

Because Faith was pregnant and very weak, the surgery was risky for Faith and the puppies. But there was no option. Faith survived. No one was sure how Faith’s ordeals, before and during the surgery, impacted the puppies, but on a Friday, Faith went to the shelter to recover.

On Monday, Faith gave birth to six boy puppies. And she became a perfect mamma, even though she’d just lost her right front leg.

Thanks to people who will never meet her and people who want to help any pet like Faith, Faith is on her way to a happy ending to her story.

Click here to donate to the Grant County Friends of the Animal Shelter and support Faith.