Canine Hero

Hank has always been a hero. Cancer simply gave him another opportunity to show everyone
else what I have known all along: courage comes in many forms and sometimes it has very long
ears, an incredible nose, an enormous heart, and a wonderfully stubborn bloodhound spirit.

I had always dreamed of having a bloodhound, so when my son chose a dog over a birthday
party, that choice led us to Hank. His litter was born on June 30, my birthday, and it felt like he
was meant to find us. That August, my son started kindergarten while Hank started puppy
“kindergarten.” My two boys grew up together, and Hank became the four-legged sibling my son
didn’t have, my constant companion, and an irreplaceable part of our little family.

And Hank was a hero long before cancer.

When a loose dog charged at me, he immediately stepped between us, taking several bites to
protect me. Another time, his unusual behavior alerted us to a carbon monoxide leak before our
alarm sounded. His impact reaches beyond our home, too. Hank has volunteered with Easter
Seals and visited special-needs classrooms to help children learn to safely interact with dogs. At
the elementary school where I teach, nearly 500 students know him as Engineer Hank.

Our Puppy Up story began eight years ago, where Hank met his best bloodhound friend, Mr.
Higgs. Since then, Higgs, Oakley, and other beloved hounds of Dr. Medlock have faced cancer,
making this fight deeply personal to our bloodhound family.

Then cancer became Hank’s fight. Over the past year, Hank has faced three different cancers.

First came an ameloblastoma that required removing part of his lower jaw and his beloved
snaggle teeth. We were warned that learning to eat again might be difficult. After a month of
hand-feeding, his surgeon finally cleared him for dry kibble. Hank gobbled it right up. Apparently,
losing part of his jaw was still no match for a bloodhound determined to eat.

Doctors also discovered and successfully removed a fibrosarcoma from his tongue. Then came
a sarcoma along his trigeminal nerve. That recovery was long and tough. We learned that
“restricted activity” for Hank is apparently its own medical challenge. Understandably, he was
over the cone, crate, and having to go out on a leash.

Hank persevered. Through every biopsy, surgery, stitch, medication, and recovery, cancer has never taken away
what makes Hank, Hank. He still steals things he shouldn’t. He still approaches life with that
wonderfully stubborn bloodhound determination. Most importantly, he has never lost his spark,
his joy, or his zest for life. Hank embodies what it means to be a hero.

From the puppy born on my birthday, to the “kindergartner” who grew up beside my son, to
Engineer Hank, protector, best friend, family, and three-time cancer survivor, Hank has filled a
place in our lives that could never belong to anyone else.

He is lovable. He is stubborn. He is courageous. Hank will forever be our hero. It is an incredible honor for Hank to walk as the Puppy Up Canine Hero not only as a survivor, but for Oakley, and every beloved dog and family whose hearts have been forever changed by cancer.