*Marcus* his story.

Marcus had a story to tell, one that changed us all here at Elliot Rescue along with touching the hearts of so many from around the world.

After being informed by Mary Helen Grant a 911 dispatcher in Taylor County, (she is also a member of our Family and a Board member of Elliot Rescue as well) That she had put a call out to Taylor County Animal Shelter about a stray dog and that we needed to get there ASAP.

Marcus was found by Elliot Rescue and the Taylor County Shelter staff laying in a dog house of a family that said he had wandered onto their property the night before.

They had put out a dog house and food for him to eat. This was january, and it was cold, very cold.

Marcus was a once beautiful Golden Retriever with long flowing hair, but what we saw was so matted in urine and feces especially around his hind end, we, at the time, could not even tell the sex he was.

The pictures you see are a montage of those first few hours at the Taylor County Shelter where we and the staff did all we could to remove the thick rotten mats from his emaciated body.

He hardly moved, did not make a sound, his eyes were sunken, his face so old and full of pain and loss, but in there, you could see that little glint.

Many would have put him to sleep as it would in their eyes be the kindest thing to do, but as we do not believe in that ideology he came home with us.

He was put on I.V fluids around the clock, kept in our room and monitored closely all night.

Slowly the days passed, he began to gain a little strength, he wanted up, and he got up, (with some help), a few steps followed, then a few more over the weeks. Until one day he went outside with his thick dog coat on and walked a good 500 yards on a leash, his  tail wagging slowly from side to side.

He was given only the best there was, he simply loved meat and potatoes covered in gravy, he deserved only the best, and that along with all the love and devotion of the Elliot Family  team made him realize, (i am quite certain), that Humans are not all bad, and most importantly he understood what love, home, warmth, peace and a full belly truly was.

Marcus lived in our room as a cherished member of our family for 6 months until he passed away peacefully in his sleep one night,  our family was present, he did not go alone.

We guessed that Marcus was well over 15 years of age, he was someones pet once, we never found out where he came from or how he came to be the way he was found, but he taught us all a valuable lesson, life is prescious no matter the breed, creed, skin or fur.

~Kat~