Lena Dunham fires back at shelter
Lena Dunham has hit back at an animal shelter in an emotional statement on Thursday after it accused her of lying about her dog’s abusive past.
The Girls actress/writer told fans last month she had made the decision to rehome Lamby after “four years of challenging behaviour and aggression that could not be treated.
“Lamby suffered terrible abuse as a pup that made having him in a typical home environment dangerous to him and others — we needed to be responsible to ourselves, our neighbours and especially our beloved boy,” she wrote in the initial post.
But when contacted about Dunham’s claims, the BARC animal shelter in Los Angeles contested some of the details.
Robert Vasquez, speaking for the facility, told Yahoo Celebrity: “We checked the records for Lamby. He was ‘owner surrendered, not enough time,’ so we do not know where she got ‘multiple owners that abused the dog.’ ”
After the statement, Dunham took to Instagram to share a painting of Lamby that hangs in her house, alongside a lengthy response in which she admitted she was more than a little upset about this new feud.
“It’s come to my attention that the staff at the shelter where I adopted Lamby have a very different account of his early life and behavioural issues than I do,” Dunham said.
She said the dog ’s “unpredictable aggression” made it impossible for her to continue looking after him, and forced her to give him up and give him “access to a better life.”
“Why should this story be subject to scrutiny and anger? It is willfully misunderstanding the truth. I hope those judging can imagine the incredible pain of letting go of your favourite creature on EARTH because you know you can’t help them be healthy and happy,” she said.
Dunham also told fans that while she has seen her fair share of scandals, “this one hurts MOST, because of the vulnerability of letting people know Lamby and my story, and because I miss him so damn much.”
Concluding her post and referencing the painting, Dunham wrote: “This is the painting that greets me every day when I walk into my home. This is the animal who taught me about loving and letting go. I know I’m a lot of fun to place your issues on, but I won’t let anyone hang their hat on this peg. Not this time.” WENN