There are so many unwanted and uncared for dogs in the world and no matter how much we might want to rescue them all, too many continue to end up in kill shelters, hoping for a little luck before their time comes.
If they are young and healthy and cute, then they stand a pretty good chance of adoption.
But for other dogs, their age or medical conditions may mean that they’re less likely to find forever homes and overburdened shelters will often euthanize them first to save costs and make room for animals more likely to earn an adoption fee.
That’s why rescues like The Pixel Fund work so hard. They want to get those broken and forgotten dogs homes too.
The rescue pulls dogs from shelters and provides them with vet care and fostering until they can find forever homes.
One of their volunteers, Lia Domingo, was asked to pick up a pit bull named Peety from a Georgia shelter and drive him 90 minutes away to Sparta, where another volunteer, Dedee Nystrom would meet her to take Peety the rest of the way to her destination.
Then Lia received a call from the executive director of the rescue’s Georgia branch about a second dog at the same shelter. A corgi mix named Penny with a bad eye.
When she arrived at the shelter, Lia knew she had to help Penny too.
“When I saw her, it just broke my heart because she was very scared and not very receptive,” she told The Dodo , “She was very nervous. She didn’t even want to look at me the first day. She just cowered.”
Lia loaded Peety and Penny into her car, but during the drive the shelter called to say that Peety’s family had been located and would pick her up in the morning. Lia turned around and took her back.
Since there was a possibility that Peety’s family wouldn’t show, it was decided that Penny would also spend one more night at the shelter instead of going to Sparta.
That way, if Peety’s family didn’t come, Lia wouldn’t have to do the whole drive again the next day.
“I gave her a kiss and whispered in her ears, ‘Don’t worry, Penny. You know we’re going to be back. We won’t let you down. I promise.'”
Peety’s family did come to take her home and Penny was waiting for Lia the next day.
Penny was a whole new dog, excited to see Lia again and making her gratitude known as soon as they were in the car.
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“She put her little arms around me and wouldn’t let me go,” she said, “she knew she was finally safe.” Lia drove the entire way petting Penny with one hand.
In Sparta, she was passed along to DeDee who took her to the vet. Penny, now renamed Chloe Olivia, is being seen by a vet to help her eye and will be ready for a forever home once she’s regained her health.
h/t: _The Dodo