Faith the Dog

Dogs are considered man's best friend.  The relationships human beings have with dogs are very unique.  Some people enjoy their companionship. Other people enjoy the security that they provide.  Some people enjoy both aspects. I grew up with dogs and still have them today.  Dogs have proven themselves to be beneficial to society beyond just the domestic setting.  As we know, dogs are helpful with the military, police and fire departments, and even visit people in hospitals.  Another aspect of K-9s is their ability to overcome the circumstances of their situation.  One dog in particular, Faith, overcame the odds of her physical situation to touch and motivate human being,s and perhaps other dogs as well.  Faith was a bipedal female dog, born with three legs; two fully developed hind legs and a deformed front leg.  The deformed leg was amputated when Faith was seven months old after it began to atrophy.  Her owner, Jude Stringfellow, adopted Faith after the mother dog was found trying to terminate her life.  Jude's son was actually the one that discovered this.  He rescued the puppy and brought him to his mother so she could take care of him.  The sad thing was, due to Faith's deformities, veternarians urged Jude Stringfellow to have her euthanized.  Unwilling to give up on her, Jude taught Faith how to hop.  Eventually, however, Faith began to walk on her own with her hind legs.  During Faith's inspirational life, there was much media coverage on her tremendous abilities.  Faith and her owner Jude were featured on The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Montel Williams Show and Ripley's Believe it or Not.  A book was even published detailing Faith's story titled "With a Little Faith."  On September 23, 2014, Faith passed on to Doggy heaven.  Even though she is no longer with us, Faith proved that even dogs have the ability to motivate and inspire.  You can even find a Memoir about Faith titled "FAITH WALKS."