Mr. Hobble, the three-legged Maltese pup from KAPS, needs your help!

May 4, 2012: Mr. Hobble's cast and stitches were removed yesterday! The cone can come off on Saturday. He can't WAIT!! :P 3-weeks of bed rest, and he'll be good to go!

April 29, 2012: Mr. Hobble is home! The surgery was successful and all is well! Poor guy is wearing a full-leg bandage and a cone though!! That will come off on Thursday, so he just has to endure the discomfort for a few more days! ^^ In 1 month, he should be as good as new. Thanks to all of his supporters, and for all who are following his story!
**Check out this video of Mr. Hobs eating with his cone**:

April 23, 2012: Mr. Hobble will have his surgery on Wednesday, April 25th at the Dogs & Cats Animal Hospital in Daegu. Thanks to Dr. Kim, who lowered the price as much as he could! Please wish Hobble luck! He will need it for over next month of recovery. Check back for photos :)

April 20, 2012 (10:40am): MR HOBBLE'S FUNDRAISING NEEDS HAVE BEEN MET! HE WILL HAVE HIS SURGERY NEXT WEEK! THANKS TO ALL FOR YOUR SUPPORT AND KIND DONATIONS! WE *REALLY* COULDN'T HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT YOU. Hobble is extending his one front leg is gratitude!! :) He is still waiting for his "forever home". If he's "the one" for you, email [email protected] to receive an application form!

Mr. Hobble is a young, three-legged KAPS foster dog who was recently diagnosed with patellar luxation, a painful condition that renders one of his three legs lame. If he does not undergo surgery soon, he may be even more heavily burdened by long-term arthritic implications. KAPS and his fosters are now humbly appealing to the greater animal rescue community in Korea to help raise the funds necessary to correct Hobble’s leg. Please read more about Mr. Hobble's story below.

This is a video of Hobble from January. Unfortunately, he just isn't moving so quickly anymore. It's just too painful for him.

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Mr. Hobble, a three-legged Maltese, has found himself short on luck since he was born little over a year ago. Losing his front left leg (due to unknown circumstances) and ending up at the KAPS shelter was probably not the future that Mr. Hobble would have envisioned for himself after he was happily adopted for the first time. Attracting much sympathy, and hand gestures indicating leg loss wherever Mr. Hobble runs, his disability would probably be the last thing on your mind if you were to ever meet him. His speed, agility and love for attention from whoever passes him by attracts many fans and curious bystanders. Whenever anyone approaches to say a quick “hello”, Mr. Hobble is quick to stand on his two back legs and extend his one remaining front leg as a means of a friendly handshake; a pose that is almost always followed by the now-ubiquitous “cute-ah!”.

When Mr. Hobble entered foster care four months ago, he suffered from a serious upper respiratory infection, that was undoubtedly contracted over the harsh winter in the shelter. Since then, he has been working very hard to become a lovable, polite and healthy dog. Despite Mr. Hobble’s resilience and hard work, he was recently diagnosed with “patellar luxation”, which is briefly defined as the consistent dislocation of the kneecap from the medial joint, and was described by Hobble’s vet as “incredibly painful”. This came as a devastating blow to Hobble, who has overcome the slimmest of odds time and time again.

Mr. Hobble’s vet informed us that this condition, “patellar luxation” is particularly common among the Maltese and Poodle dog breeds in Korea. This condition is a result of being born in a puppy-mill, where certain traits (such as size) are selectively bred into dogs and sometimes result in health and developmental problems. In order to remedy Mr. Hobble’s condition, he is going to require surgery at a cost that is not affordable to his current foster parents, nor to the Korean Animal Protection Society (KAPS) that he is a part of. Patellar luxation is tough enough on a four-legged dog, who is forced to make do with three; Hobble simply can’t get around on just two.

The past week has been an incredibly trying one for Mr. Hobble, who is no longer capable of long hikes up Waryong Mountain, or strolling around the Keimyung University campus for hours on end. He has been confined to his bed, where he spends most of his time sleeping away the afternoons in a haze from the pain medication. In order to give this lovable and carefree dog another shot at defying the odds and overcoming the obstacles put in place by the humans in his early life, we need to raise 850,000 KRW to cover the cost of his operation (500,000 won), bloodwork (90,000 won), post-op medication for at least 6 weeks (100,000 won), and his rehabilitation at the animal hospital (+ boarding) for 3-4 days (150,000+ won).

If you are in a position to generously donate to Mr. Hobble, he would be really, really appreciative. Please email [email protected] with the amount you would like to donate and why you want to help out Mr. Hobble!

Please consider donating to help Mr. Hobble and remember his story if you are ever considering buying a dog from a puppy shop in Korea.

[Mr. Hobble is also waiting for his "forever home". If you are interested in learning more about Mr. Hobble, here is his ARK profile: http://www.animalrescuekorea.org/dog/461 <---- You can also find the X-RAYS OF HOBBLE'S LEG HERE.