10/22/25 FOREVER IN OUR HEARTS ~ From the moment Gladiator came into our care, broken in body but never in spirit, he captured the hearts of everyone who followed his story. He had every reason to give up, but instead, he chose to trust, to love and to show us what true courage looks like.
Though his time with us was far too short, Gladiator reminded us all why we do what we do.. that every dog deserves comfort, dignity and to know they are deeply loved. His foster parents, Lari and Rob, share this beautiful tribute to a boy whose gentle soul and unbreakable heart will never be forgotten.
Lari shared: What an amazing, gentle, loving soul! That was our Gladiator. I wanted to bring him to Bull-O-Ween so everyone could meet him and experience the joy of just being around him.
He deserved to be showered with love and adoration from all in attendance. I wanted to show everyone what love, good nutrition and vet care could do.
I knew we wouldn’t cure his cancer, but I had hope that he would get better and have more time to experience lying in the sun, never missing meals, getting endless treats and receiving all the belly rubs and bum scratches he wanted. He never acted sick, but we found new tumors daily.
One afternoon last week, we sat in the shade of an oak tree and told our Gladiator how loved he was. Our hearts and home now have an emptiness we didn’t expect to loom so large, considering we didn’t have Gladiator long.
We do know, because of one amazing pup we were honored to care for, that our lives are changed for the better. We want to be the people who are described as gentle, loving souls!
“Brothers, what we do in life… echoes in eternity.”
