I’m not sure why you’ve jumped to the conclusion that a judicial foreclosure and subsequent deficiency judgment is a forgone conclusion. Your animal metaphors are odd. But you obviously care a lot about this post.
I am simply saying that your suggestion to aggressively defend is something that would cost the OP more than the amount of the debt. And, it’s pretty basic stuff. Unpaid HOA dues result in liens. Liens are the precursor of a foreclosure; the non-judicial foreclosure results in the loss of ownership not a monetary judgment against the owner. Yet, you’ve immediately assumed there would be a judgment.
I always suggest folks consider the cost/benefit. Don’t throw good money after bad as the saying goes. If the OP doesn’t care about ownership and doesn’t care about the hit to the credit report a non-judicial foreclosure will cause, then fine. If they do, then attempting to resolve the matter prior to the non-judicial foreclosure is the time to address it.
In the meantime, the last thing the OP needs to do is cause the HOA to spend more money on attorney fees and costs, because that will only come back to the OP. It’s extremely difficult to defend against a foreclosure when the debts are known and the statutory process is followed.