Perrito ciego y sordo está inspirando a los niños para la adopción de animales discapacitados

Este cachorrito parece sacado de las historias de Winnie the Pooh, pues su tono rosado y la ternura que transmite lo hace parecer un dibujo animado. Quizá por ese motivo se llama Piglet, además de por su gran parecido con el personaje de la serie.

Pero por mucho que su aspecto sea similar, no es un cerdito, es una mezcla de perro salchicha y chihuahua. Aunque ahora vive «como un principito», según declaró su dueña, nació sordo y ciego junto a otros 37 cachorros en Georgia.

Melissa Shapiro es una veterinaria de Connecticut, Estados Unidos, que lo acogió cuando era un recién nacido y apenas pesaba medio kilo. En un principio, no lo iba a adoptar definitivamente, pero tras dos meses con Piglet le fue imposible imaginar su vida sin él.

«Fue una decisión muy difícil. Cuidar de un cachorro discapacitado es como tener un trabajo a tiempo completo», declaró la mujer a People. «Pero es tan mono que no pudimos separarnos de él».

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Last night I left the tiny boy home with the rest of the dogs. Warren and I went to a piano violin concert given by our good friends Andy and Darwin. Andy’s 2 year old son and wife were there long enough for us to witness the most adorable little boy enjoying listening to his dad playing the piano. During the concert I was thinking about Piglet- of course. Over two years ago Piglet was our foster puppy. We were very serious about finding him a forever home. Piglet was listed on Petfinder. I posted pictures and videos of him on my own Facebook page. We were very clear about certain requirements and limits for applicants. Topping the list was that his new home would have other small dogs for him to play with, and no small children. The point of this story is that after the concert we stayed to chat with our musician friends. The first thing Andy said to me was that he wanted to thank me. I immediately said, “For not giving you Piglet?” And he said “Yes. That would have been a mistake.” He went on to say something to the tune of wanting to adopt Piglet was driven by unrealistic emotions. Recently I wrote an article called How Will You Choose Your Next Pup? https://petinsider.com/how-will-you-choose-your-next-pup/ The point of the article is that choosing a new dog must be based on that dog being the right match for your family. There are so many dogs with so many different personalities, preferences, activity levels, and needs. Hair coat, size, breed type, and age are also important considerations in finding the right match. We are happy Piglet stayed with us. There absolutely are others who could have adopted him and given him an amazing life. But realistically, he was not a beginner dog and he was not a dog for a family with babies. He was and is not a dog that wants to be carried around in a pouch as some imagined. Piglet is an active feisty dachshund chihuahua mix with a strong will and determination to be a dog. He has no idea he is so small and he certainly doesn’t let his disabilities stand in his way. I’m happy that my friend Andy came to realize that the dogs he has are a good match for his family and Piglet was not. Have a great Sunday!!

Una publicación compartida por Piglet, deaf blind pink puppy (@pinkpigletpuppy) el 22 de Sep de 2019 a las 7:31 PDT

Aun así, parece que la veterinaria lo pasó mal durante el primer mes, pues no pudo ni salir de casa para quedarse con él. «Tenía tanta ansiedad que gritaba constantemente. Jugaba y luego se dormía, pero cuando no hacía ninguna de esas dos cosas se ponía a gritar», explicó Melissa.

Pero ahora el perrito está mucho mejor, ha superado la ansiedad y juega con sus hermanos, los 6 perros que Melissa Melissa tiene en casa.

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If you were driving down the street and saw this, what would you do?? Here are some ideas: 5. Stop your car and ask if the insane person walking the dogs is a dog walker, because you are looking for someone to take care of your own dogs. 4. Slow down to drive by with your mouth wide open because the sight of such adorable dogs all together is shocking. 3. Stop your car, get out, smile and laugh with hands over your gaping mouth, express your happiness at being fortunate to witness such precious dogs. 2. Slow down and call out that you’ve never seen such an adorable group of rescue dogs. 1. Stop your car and hyperventilate because you are witnessing the most adorable pink dog taking a walk with his amazing dog pack. . . . #pinkpigletpuppy #dogstroller #dogwalk #dogwalker #dogpack #dogsdoingthings #rescuedogs #barked #bark #dogsofbark #weratedogs #daddyofdogs #thedogist #ellendegeneres

Una publicación compartida por Piglet, deaf blind pink puppy (@pinkpigletpuppy) el 26 de Sep de 2019 a las 7:10 PDT

Piglet, todo un ‘influencer’, tiene incluso su propia cuenta de Instagram en la que acumula ya más de 100.000 seguidores. Se ha convertido en toda una celebridad en redes, y es que su dueña pensó que su historia podía ayudar a más personas: «Cuando nos lo quedamos, pensé que Piglet tenía que tener un significado mucho mayor».

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We were excited to open an envelope filled with letters from our 2nd grade friends We were excited to open an envelope filled with letters from our 2nd grade friends in Alabama. The children asked if Piglet is happy in his home. The answer- Absolutely! Despite being deaf and blind and tiny, Piglet is a happy little dog. He loves his home and his life. He loves his mom and dad and dog pack family, he loves going to work, he loves to travel, and he loves to visit classrooms to teach children about his Piglet Mindset. The children also asked why Piglet is deaf and blind. This is a complicated question with a complicated answer. Piglet was born in a hoarding situation. In his case, the people had three non-neutered dogs that bred to make more dogs, who bred to make more dogs, who bred to make even more dogs… and so it went that 3 dogs became 37 dogs in their small apartment. One of those 37 was Piglet. With an overpopulation of unwanted dogs, we should not be allowing dogs to breed in this way. Making matters worse, many of the dogs in Piglet’s situation were dapple color patterned. When two dapple colored dogs breed there is a 25% chance that the babies will be “double dapple” meaning that they receive a dominant dapple gene from each parent. Double dapple dogs are white or mostly white and many have congenital ear and eye defects which cause them to be deaf and or blind. Piglet has both- he is deaf and blind. Piglet’s original people did not intentionally breed two dapples. They were in over their heads and things got out of control. Thankfully a rescue group came in to help. Piglet is one of the lucky ones. Many dogs like Piglet are euthanized by breeders if rescue groups don’t come forward. Many end up in shelters or abandoned on the streets. Piglet’s Mission includes educating about the severe consequences of double dapple breeding, and encouraging people to adopt special needs pets. We have created educational PDFs and lesson plans for teachers to incorporate Piglet Mindset into their curriculum. Learn more about our Piglet Mindset Educational Outreach Program. Pinkpigletpuppy.org

Una publicación compartida por Piglet, deaf blind pink puppy (@pinkpigletpuppy) el 21 de Sep de 2019 a las 12:07 PDT

La vida de este perro influencer llegó hasta un colegio de Massachusetts, donde un profesor utilizó el caso de Piglet como ejemplo para una terapia de crecimiento positivo. Su historia sirvió para enseñar a los estudiantes a no darse por vencido y promover la idea de crecimiento y lucha personal.

«Al final del año, sorprendimos a los alumnos. Pensaban que íbamos a hacer una videollamada por FaceTime y entramos de repente con Piglet montado en su silla de paseo junto a tres de mis perros. Todo el mundo se puso a llorar», explicó Melissa.

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Piglet recognizes his dog and human friends by smelling their breath. When he meets new people friends he might be neutral. But sometimes he acts like he’s been reunited with a long lost cousin. This is an early Throwback Thursday video of our friend Ed winning the Piglet wiggly, tail wagging greeting prize. . . Check out Piglet’s new article on People.com. Link is in Piglet’s story. . #pinkpigletpuppy #greeting #happydog #bff #tailwagging #wag #petinsider #dogkisses #deafdogsrock #blinddogsrock #rescuedogsrock #dogfeatures #dogsofinstagram #dogsdoingthings #happy

Una publicación compartida por Piglet, deaf blind pink puppy (@pinkpigletpuppy) el 2 de Oct de 2019 a las 3:20 PDT

Piglet ahora tiene su propia página web oficial en la que se puede descargar gratuitamente un programa de aprendizaje para enseñar a los niños a enfrentar este tipo de desafíos, trabajar con lo que tienen y olvidarse de lo que no tienen. Esta especie de escuela online ha llegado a aulas de otros lugares como Alabama, Connecticut e incluso a Japón y Australia.

«La gente tiene miedo de adoptar estos animales, piensan que van a dar demasiado trabajo. Pero la gente ve la página de Piglet y me mandan mensajes diciendo que, gracias a él, acaban de adoptar», contó Melissa.

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Thank you to Greta Bjornson and People.com for publishing a beautiful article about Piglet this afternoon. We want to welcome many new friends who found Piglet via that article. I’ve received many questions about Piglet so here is a brief summary of Piglet, the deaf blind pink puppy. Scroll to see a few adorable pictures of Piggy and his pack. Piglet is a double dapple doxie chihuahua mix. He was born in a hoarding situation. When two dapple color patterned dogs breed there is a 25% chance each puppy will receive two dapple genes. This is called “double dapple” or double merle which is linked to congenital ear and eye defects. Piglet is deaf and blind. Piglet faces his challenges with a positive attitude. This is called a Piglet Mindset. He is an exceptional growth mindset model for children and adults. Our Piglet Mindset Educational Outreach Program is available on Piglet’s website for classroom use (free downloads). We are happy to support teachers who introduce Piglet to their students. We correspond via mail and email, send Piglet Merchandise, and visit when possible. Piglet is an animal welfare advocate. He encourages spay and neuter, educates about the severe consequences of double dapple breeding, and he encourages adoption of special needs pets. Our fundraising efforts have exceeded $30,000 which has all been donated to special needs dog rescues and other nonprofit organizations. Most of all, Piglet is an adorable, happy, entertaining tiny pink dog with a very positive attitude. He puts a smile on faces all around the world. Visit pinkpigletpuppy.org to learn more. And email with questions and inquiries. [email protected]. Keep an eye on Piggy’s stories this weekend as he will be in Columbus, Ohio participating in the Special K9 Games!! . . . #pinkpigletpuppy #deafdogsofinstagram #blinddogsofinstagram #rescuedogsofinstagram #doubledapple #animaladvocate #aspca #humanesociety #petinsider #tdafam #buzzfeedanimals

Una publicación compartida por Piglet, deaf blind pink puppy (@pinkpigletpuppy) el 2 de Oct de 2019 a las 5:19 PDT

El dinero que la veterinaria gana gracias a las redes sociales y el merchandising de Piglet va destinado a refugios de animales con necesidades especiales. Hasta ahora, el perro ha recaudado más de 30.000 dólares.

Pero la familia del cánido no quiere que su labor quede ahí, esperan poder llegar a más aulas en el futuro y crear una organización sin ánimo de lucro para poder destinar más dinero a las asociaciones que rescatan animales.

¡Los perros son tiernas mascotas que dan amor incondicionalmente! 

Si esta conmovedora historia inspiró tu corazón, por favor, compártela. Apoya el periodismo independiente y ayúdanos a difundir las buenas noticias a todo mundo.