A shot at happiness
Wounded and left for dead, pit bull used as bait dog finds perfect owner, who’s missing a limb, too.
WHISKEY the pit bull will never be whole again after losing a leg when she was shot and left for dead as a bait dog.
But she is complete, thanks to a new master who’s also missing a limb.
“I imagined what this sweet, loving dog must be going through,” said Jeff Meyer of Mansfield, Texas, “and knew I could help.”
Before she was Whiskey, she was a malnourished and fearful bait dog named Jessica, used as prey in dog-fighting bouts.
Abandoned by her old master, someone left her at the Fort Worth animal shelter where veterinarians saved her life, but not her leg.
She eventually recovered from her injuries and ended up in the care of Kristen Flora, a foster-dog mum who spent five months helping Whiskey trust people again.
“Watching her overcome so many obstacles was a joy,” Flora said. “It’s inspirational to watch a dog with three limbs and a history of sadness love and just be, without question or sadness or anxiety or any of the things we experience as humans.”
Those challenges are familiar to Meyer, who was born without part of his left forearm.
“As a child, and sometimes even as an adult, I was/am looked at differently by people,” he said.
“Often they will ignore me out of fear of the unknown.”
Until Meyer came along, Whiskey’s future was uncertain, between having a disability and being a breed that “gets a bad rap”, said Missy Redding, co-founder of the non-profit Bull-luv-able Paws.
“The chances of a tri-pawed, bait-dog pit bull being adopted was about 1 out of 100,000,” Redding said. “We were not confident of her ever being adopted.”
But Whiskey had beaten the odds before, and she did again, thanks to a serendipitous Facebook post.
Meyer saw a post by the Lucky Fin Project, a nonprofit support network for those born with “limb differences” _ and he knew he’d found a lifelong friend.
Renamed Whiskey, after something else Meyer loves, she’s now showered with chew toys and unconditional affection, and she gives it right back.
“I know from experience how others will view her and knew that she needed her shot at happiness,” Meyer said. “Lucky for me it’s just that. She has brought a ton of happiness into our home.” – The Dallas Morning News/Tribune News Service