A Home for Every Animal Being homeless is bad enough but being homeless, abused, paralyzed, and requiring extensive daily care is almost always a death sentence for dogs in municipal shelters. Thankfully, Petunia and Brinkley found their way to Pawmetto Lifeline, a no-kill organization that believes in the value of a second chance. is a gorgeous Sheltie/Pomeranian mix found abandoned in an apartment. Animal B RINKLEY Control was called to remove him from the property and then transferred from a municipal
shelter to Pawmetto Lifeline, where he lived for five years.
The touch of a hand was more than Brinkley could bare and he would react as if he was on the verge of being tortured. He is blind in one eye and visually impaired in another eye. A veterinary neurologist believes he most likely suffered severe head trauma. Putting Brinkley in a busy, high stress kennel surrounded by other dogs and strangers was debilitating. A veterinarian, who is also an animal behaviorist, instructed the Pawmetto Lifeline leadership team to find a quiet place at Pawmetto Lifeline where he could live with limited contact with people so he could build a trusting relationship with humans. During his five years at Pawmetto Lifeline, he developed relationships with 4-5 employees that he trusted as much as he could trust. He could touch you, even on occasion (but rare) he would give you a quick kiss, lay in your lap, and act as if he was in heaven. So we knew if someone could respect those boundaries, Brinkley could be adopted. Most people could not accept a touchless relationship with Brinkley. It was more about what they needed and not what Brinkley needed. Brinkley learned how to be leashed up with a special leash. He loves to go on walks, chase his toys, and just hang out. After five years, Brinkley was adopted on December 6, 2020. He is the only dog in a home where his parents have said he can be who he is even if he never learns to love the touch of a hand, he can continue to live in a quiet home, walk, run and play freely with his new mom and dad, John and Tayler in North Carolina.
P
ETUNIA was found on the side of the road paralyzed. Her ears had been chopped off as well as her tail. She was found on December 31st, 2019 and brought to Pawmetto Lifeline by a private citizen that found her. Petunia was adopted and returned twice. She is extremely reactive to other dogs and both families had dogs and did not feel they could manage to keep their dogs and Petunia separate for life. While Petunia is reactive with other dogs, she is obsessed with humans and loves to be with her people constantly. Simply touching her human friends gives her comfort and joy. Living at Pawmetto Lifeline was extremely stressful for Petunia, with over 150 animals, lots of volunteers and guests visiting, Petunia was very DISTRESSED. She constantly had stress diarrhea which created issues with personal hygiene and bacterial infections. Petunia became a “celebrity” on TikTok with followers all over the country. Many wanted to adopt and others wanted to send her gifts. On December 11th, a young wonderful couple who recently lost their beloved dog to mouth cancer and had been following Petunia on TikTok made the decision that they needed, and wanted, to give Petunia a forever home. Petunia is in love with her new mom and dad. She is the only dog in a world where a disability makes her special, NOT unadoptable. Pawmetto Lifeline hopes that organizations around the country will change their mindset about dogs with trust issues and give them a chance to be rehabilitated by developing trusting relationships with humans. In a world where shelters are not truly implementing “managed intake programs” that prevent shelters from euthanizing due to space or time or manageable medical issues, both Brinkley and Petunia would have been euthanized. We are honored that both, Brinkley and Petunia, came to Pawmetto Lifeline and we were able to protect, advocate and place them with families that respect all life, even those that have issues from abuse, neglect, and disabilities.
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Give a Special Needs Pet a Home!
