Title: What Could Have Been

Artist: Christina Faulkner / Nature & Glam

Medium: Sterling silver

Dimensions: 2.5cm x 2.5cm; 20in sterling silver chain

Animal Depicted: Alani

Artist's Note:

This piece is inspired by sweet Alani who the staff worked tirelessly to save but her body was too tired to carry on. This is an imagining of the life that she (and every dog) deserved to have. On the back is sweet Alani running towards the rainbow bridge, happy and pain free.

One afternoon, we rescued this sweet girl. You could see every rib, but she turned her head away from food. Never a good sign. We did x-rays and saw she had an intestinal blockage. Because she wasn't stable, we knew she wouldn't survive surgery. We tried everything we could to get her stable - we removed fluid from her abdomen to make her more comfortable and took her to a specialist for overnight care. During the car ride we just kept saying, "You can do this baby. We love you so much."

We rubbed her temple gently and told her how brave and beautiful she was. She sweetly nuzzled our hands as if to say, "Thank you."

It was determined she had the blockage for so long her little body couldn't fight it anymore. She would actually need 2-3 feet of intestines removed. She was so weak, she would never make it through the surgery. If only she had come to us sooner, she could have had a chance.

Although thankful she didn't die alone on the street all by herself, our hearts broke. Whether we know them for one hour or one year, we let our walls down and allow ourselves to love them. Because we know they can feel it. Every animal that comes to us matters.

Status: Deceased

Shipping Available:

*If you are the winning bidder and are not in attendance to pick up your item(s) the night of the event at the Four Seasons Hotel artwork will be available for pick up from the Pine Street Shelter starting Wednesday, August 13th. Artwork will NOT be available to pick up before this (unless you are notified otherwise via email). If you are not local to the St. Louis Area, shipping is available for this item upon request (for an additional cost which will be calculated for each piece individually). All winning bidders will receive an email with more information once the auction has closed.