Shelter dog with a missing ear recreates plush toy to make it look like him

All dogs gravitate towards one toy they cannot let go of. Toys are a crucial part of a dog’s development. You can get them all the plushies in the world, but sometimes they get creative and make their toy out of a non-toy item, like paper or sticks. They make it according to their liking and unearth a deep-rooted attraction to their toy of choice. It was the case with Bruno. A 1-year-old pit bull with a missing ear was rescued from an abusive home. Bruno was constantly sad at his shelter, but the staff eased him by gifting him a plush dog toy, reports the Dodo. 

However, the staff soon noticed that Bruno had torn one of the ears off his favorite stuffed toy to make it look more like him. Everyone assumed Bruno's future would be filled with grief after fleeing his abusive home. “Bruno used to live chained up outside,” his rescuers from the SPCA of Wake County, North Carolina, wrote. “And his ear was torn off when another dog attacked him and he couldn’t run away.” Bruno formed a close bond with the shelter personnel despite his traumatic past. One day, a staff member went to check on him and couldn’t believe what he saw. “Bruno tore one of the ears off his favorite stuffed toy—the same ear he’s missing himself,” the shelter said. “Bruno knows there’s nothing wrong with him, and now he has a best friend just like him to prove it.”

Bruno found solace in his new plush, but what happened after pictures of him and his toy became popular is even more heartwarming. Bruno finally found a loving new home. "Just like that, Bruno has a new dad!" "Of course, he has to bring his matching stuffie so they can be buddies forever," the shelter wrote in an update. "Bruno's adopter loves him just the way he is and promised to show Bruno nothing but unconditional love for the rest of his life." He's having the time of his life right now, thanks to his new family and his plush toy. Moreover, the shelter will provide Bruno’s lifesaving treatment for heartworm disease. If you're interested, feel free to donate   

According to Psychology Today, Phil Arkow, chair of the Animal Abuse and Family Violence Prevention Project, explains that "humane criminology" understands the overlap between animal abuse and crimes against intimate partners in a special issue of Social Sciences. Animal abuse and domestic violence go hand-in-hand and law enforcement organizations and the National Sheriffs Association, for example, consider animal cruelty a "gateway crime" because it helps them identify potential perpetrators. “While local law enforcement still tends to trivialize animal cruelty as being somewhat less important than crimes against people,” said Arkow, “some agencies are slowly coming to realize that crimes against animals are indeed also crimes against people and making animal cruelty cases a higher priority.”

In the US, more than 30 states have policies to safeguard humans and pets from violence and more than 250 domestic violence shelters are pet-friendly. The safeplaceforpets.org, created by RedRover, a US non-profit, is one resource where you can find housing and programs for people and pets who need a safe escape from domestic violence. “There are many reasons why domestic violence survivors deny what is occurring or keep returning,” said Arkow. “They’ll blame themselves, or say the guy didn’t mean it or is getting better. But the reality is this: if he’s hurting harmless dogs, it’s not the pet’s fault, it’s not your fault, it’s his fault. And you, the children, and the pets need to get out of there ASAP.”