Canines in Capaha Park raise cancer awareness

A pavilion full of people and their pooches was the sight Saturday morning in Capaha Park during the second annual Bark for Life event, which benefits the American Cancer Society�s Relay for Life.

The event raised nearly $4,000 last year and this year�s goal is $5,000, said Pris Mabuce, event organizer and a cancer survivor.

�We�re just now starting out and each year we just want to keep increasing. We�re doing good,� she said.

Mabuce said the day brings several organizations together to raise money for ASC. She said one of the main focuses is the survivors.

�We had three survivors. It�s almost easier fighting cancer than watching someone you care about go through it,� she said. �It really is.�

Precious, a canine cancer survivor, walks with owner Jessica Kuehn on Saturday during the American Cancer Society's Bark for Life event at Capaha Park in Cape Girardeau.Fred Lynch

Participants were asked to bring their �furry friends� because, Mabuce said, it signifies the unconditional love expressed by pets. Dogs are always there for you, even when you�re sick or going through something, she said.

Mabuce has been involved with similar relays since 2001. She explained the event not only supports the fight against cancer that affects humans, but also brings attention to dogs who are fighting or have fought cancer in the past.

�What happens to us happens to them, too,� she said.

Cape Girardeau native Jessica Kuehn also was in attendance Saturday with her 15-year-old Chihuahua and dachshund mix, Precious, a canine cancer survivor.

Kuehn said Precious �kind of came to me and decided to come stay with us� when she and her family were living in an apartment complex. The owners at the time, Kuehn said, agreed to let Kuehn adopt Precious.

�She�s been with me about six years,� she said. �About four years ago, we found a mass on her breast tissue area. They checked it out and it was cancerous.�

Cape Girardeau veterinarian Kelly Smith was at Saturday�s event representing her practice, Dogwood Veterinary Hospital, and to support �raising money for a good cause� with a formerly injured, 1 1/2-year-old mixed breed dog named Bullet.

According to Smith, Bullet was shot in the leg, which resulted in a break. He�s been stationed at Dogwood for three and a half months undergoing treatment for heartworms. Bullet also has been vaccinated and dewormed, Smith said.

�Now we�re trying to find him a home,� she said.

Smith said her father is a five-year survivor of pancreatic cancer. She also said one of the veterinarians at her clinic was just diagnosed with cancer, so the event is definitely �near and dear to our heart.�

Bark for Life first-timer Holly Finnegan brought her 17-week-old mini Aussie mixed canine, Maverick.

�My grandma suffered from cancer,� Finnegan said. �It�s just something that has affected a lot of my family. It�s always a worthy cause to support.�

Among the many activities catered to canines Saturday, Southeast Missouri native Mary Stucker and her three Shetland sheepdogs were awarded first place in the event�s look-a-like contest.

Stucker said her mother was a colon-cancer survivor and attended last year as well.

Her dogs � Rudy, Oscar and Lacy � are 3 years old and take part in a sport called �rally,� in addition to agility and obedience. She said they are also trained for tricks and therapy.

One of the two males, Rudy, came from a breeder after Stucker suffered a broken heart.

�I had to put my other one down from cancer,� she said.

Oscar is a newcomer to the Stucker family, she said. He was a rescue from the Humane Society and was mistreated by his previous owners by being kept in a cage and only fed every other day, she said.

She said her three dogs are known as �The SEMO Trio,� and she travels to different places, mostly in Southeast Missouri and takes photos of her canines at landmarks.

Stucker said she has relatives who live in Florida and has stopped at �all the states in between� for snapshots of her canines.

jhartwig@semissourian.com

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