King Beau McDonald

King Beau McDonald It is with solemn hearts we share the news about the passing of miraculous fur baby, King Beau McDonald, 6, of Marion, during the late afternoon of Thursday, September 4th, 2025, surrounded by his father, mother, and siblings, following a courageous fight with a quick on set of cancer, at his residence. Beau, a loving, chestnut brown lab mix, started his journey out in Marlboro County, South Carolina. Beau was involved in a hit and run situation with a car, which left Beau severely injured and left for dead beside the road. Samaritans found him and brought him to the Marlboro County Humane Society. From there Beau was immediately rushed to surgery to help repair dozens of broken bones and damaged organs. Marlboro reached out in search of fosters to help him. Beau’s fostering would consist of several follow-up surgeries, doctor’s appointments and constant care and hands on support just for him to make it from one point to the next in the room. The call to foster was answered by Matthew McDonald and Ashley Collins along with the help of Patricia Clifton and House of Hope Rescue in Maryland. They took it upon themselves to take Beau in as one of their own and make sure he stood a chance with the world stacked against him. Following many trips back and forth to Columbia Veterinary Emergency Trauma and Specialty Hospital and Florence Animal Hospital, Beau began to show improvement. Following a month of help walking, he began to regain the strength to stand on his own and before long had returned to a normal life. Beau always exuded a peaceful, kind demeanor throughout his tribulations. Needless to say, all the time spent with Beau led to him being a “foster fail” when it came time to try for his forever home. Matthew and Ashley felt he was home. Beau was then officially adopted and welcomed into his own pack amongst his siblings. Beau enjoyed the best life possible following his accident. He came from abandonment into becoming accepted and causing a royal mess within his new household. Beau’s surgeries had left him with a constant wiggle and a fondness to attach himself like velcro to people’s sides. Beau developed a fondness for cheese, following many doses of medicine disguised with it. He didn’t care, he loved any kind of cheese, and you were always expected to pay the “cheese tax” when you had any near him. Beau loved hot chips almost as much as his cheese. If those chips were anywhere near his reach, they were his. Beau was on top of the world, he had his own little apartment, his 10:00 P.M. bedtime, and his own loving family and life was fabulous for this little lab mix until an unexpected diagnosis hit everyone out of the blue. Beau was diagnosed recently with Hemangiosarcoma, a highly malignant cancer of blood vessels. This caught everyone off guard. The doctors assessed this was inadvertently a side effect of Beau being broken up so much from his accident but still came as a gut punch. Beau was placed on home hospice following the cancer’s rapid rate, where he was made as comfortable and loved as much as one could. Beau was the mischievous little blessed spirit in brown fur that will always be missed and never replaced. Surviving Beau in addition to his parents Matthew McDonoald and Ashely Collins are his brothers and sisters: Sadie Belle, Edna Pebbles, Margaret Elanor, Charles Earl, Bruce Wayne, Sir Charles, Penny Lu, and Penelope Bay; his aunt and uncle, Alex Milwid and Gina Trapani of Maryland, his grandparent, Eric Collins and many cousins. Beau was preceded by his special cousins, Cooper, Rainnie, and Doh. Very special “Thank You,” goes out to Cindy Creech, Brittany Hatcher and the employees and staff of to Columbia Veterinary Emergency Trauma and Specialty Hospital and Florence Animal Hospital, Marlboro Humaine Society, House of Hope, and Cox-Collins Funeral Home, Loyal Companions. I honor of Beau, please volunteer, foster, or donate to an animal shelter or rescue of your choice in your area.

King Beau McDonald

September 4, 2025