Before you get indignant and immediately say no, listen to this story.

Recently Hobbs, a 4 year old lab mix was the center of an abuse story. Last week Anthony Ansill, 25, of Arlington was arrested for slicing open Hobbs chest after beating him with a nail studded board. Hobbs’ rib cage and abdomen were exposed by the foot long cut.

At the time, Hobbs was ‘owned’ by Shawn Lea and he had left the dog in Ansill’s care for a couple of days while he was away. He returned to find to a pungent odor and saw Ansill petting Hobbs, the dog’s abdomen and rib cage were exposed by the horrendous wound. Hobbs could not lay down and was having trouble holding himself up.

Ansil forgot to let Hobbs out and the dog had an accident in the house, the beating was Ansil’s retaliation.

Hobbs was treated and is doing much better now. He’s at Animal Friends shelter recovering.

Now we find out more about Hobbs’ story. You see, Shawn Lea was not Hobbs’ original owner. It seems that Lisa Sobeck and her family had Hobbs up until about three months ago.

Lisa and her husband, Joe, didn’t want to give Hobbs up, he’d been a part of their family for a long time and was very loved. Admittedly I’ll be one of the first people to say that people should find a way to keep a pet, that they’re not disposable, they’re for life and I do feel this way. In this case though, I can see the situation.

See, one of the Sobeck’s five children, Noah, only two years old, was suffering from deteriorating, congenital kidney and bladder condition that required surgery. Lisa herself was being tested for lymphoma and in serious pain. She just couldn’t care for home, five children, one who was seriously ill, and Hobbs.

They didn’t dump Hobbs or surrender him to an animal shelter, they found a new home for him with a cousin, a family member where they felt he would be loved and cared for as he was with them. They also told the cousin that if there was a problem, to bring Hobbs back.

“We don’t understand why our family didn’t return Hobbs to us when the problems started,” Lisa Sobeck said. “Those were our instructions: ‘If anything goes wrong, we’ll take him back immediately.’ “

Seems that Hobbs had an accident in the house a couple of weeks ago and the cousin gave the dog away without ever contacting the Sobeck’s who would have happily taken him back into the family.

Noah had had his surgery, a kidney was removed, and was doing well and Lisa’s problems turned out to be related to hormone therapy. They had no idea that Hobbs wound up in Arlington and they feel responsible for the pain and suffering the beloved dog had been through. They want a chance to make it up to him, to make things better; they want him back.

“Some people might say we don’t deserve him back,” Lisa Sobeck said. “But we love him and he loved our home. My cat (Sadie) and him were best friends.”

Her eldest son, Austin Sobeck, 7, said he’d give Hobbs a hug when he saw the dog again.

“Whenever I threw the ball, he’d go get it and bring it back,” said Austin, who made a get-well card for Hobbs with markers that included a black-and-white picture of the dog and SpongeBob SquarePants and Scooby Doo stickers.

“I’m going to pet him,” said Austin’s brother, Nathan, 5. He used to play video games with Hobbs lying on the floor nearby. Nathan made a get-well card that featured a rainbow, Elmo stickers and the message “I love you.”

“We’ll have to sit down and talk about the situation with the Sobecks,” Miklas said. “But Lisa Sobeck has been wonderful. She’s been providing details about Hobbs to help readopt him, which would be a beautiful, happy ending for him.” (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

So, what do you think??

In most cases I feel that if someone gave away their pet, that’s it, the end. But this is definitely not most cases. Imagine how you would feel if you were forced for some reason to part with your beloved canine companion but you made sure he was somewhere, with family, safe and sound. You thought of him often and missed him and hoped he was safe, happy and well. Then you find out, on the news yet, that he had been the victim of a vicious attack and was living with someone, somewhere and you had no clue who this person was or how he had gotten there.

The situation that forced you to part with your dog had been resolved and now all you want to do is to bring him back to your loving home, to your family, to your children.

You can see by the family pictures, that Hobbs was a part of the family. I hope they get to bring Hobbs home where he belongs, to the family that loves and misses him. I truly think that would be the happiest ending for everyone, especially Hobbs!

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