From Cruelty Case to Cuddles: The Dog Who Stole His Rescuer’s Heart
As an animal care technician, it’s Leah Mackey’s job to make sure that every dog at the Animal Humane Society (AHS) receives plenty of love.
“My day-to-day is making sure that their habitats or enclosures are sanitized, clean, livable, they have ample food and water,” said Mackey.
But one day, a very large, shy dog named Shrek arrived at the Golden Valley shelter. That’s when her professional duties became deeply personal.
“A volunteer had walked him in,” said Mackey. “He had just come into our location here from a cruelty case. And I saw him walk in and my jaw literally dropped. I just have a huge affinity for large dogs.”
Shrek arrived in rough shape. He was found abandoned on a rental property, and he had porcupine quills in his muzzle from an apparent scuffle.
“The porcupine quills were kind of just the beginning of his troubles,” said Brittany Baumann, a public relations strategist with the Animal Humane Society. “He also had Lyme disease and another tick-borne illness. He also, while he was here, got kennel cough.”
Shrek spent weeks in medical quarantine at the Animal Humane Society in Golden Valley.
‘I fell in love with him’
As Shrek recovered in medical quarantine, he spent his days primarily with Mackey.
“Every day at the end of my shift I would go into his run where he was staying and I would snuggle him and feed him and I just fell in love with him so quickly and we started bonding really fast,” said Mackey.
Despite a promise to her family that she wouldn’t bring any animals home, she made a small exception for Shrek, who never even made it to the adoption floor.
“I met this dog and I fell in love with him. I just couldn’t resist,” she said.
Mackey wasn’t the only one to fall in love with him.
Shrek became a fan favorite during his time at the Animal Humane Society. During Mackey’s interview with CCX News, a large group of AHS staff members took a break from work to say hello.
That group of staffers has a profound impact on every one of the animals who come to the Golden Valley shelter.
“Watching all of the animals whose lives we get to change, it just, sorry, makes me a little emotional,” said Mackey, fighting back tears.
It’s now been more than a month since Mackey brought Shrek home, trading his quarantine kennel for a life of snuggles.
“Everybody knew that him and Leah were kind of supposed to be together,” said Baumann. “It was meant to be, I think. In this case, he chose her.”
Shrek now lives with several other pets, including one other dog appropriately named, Fiona.
Meanwhile, the Animal Humane Society notes that large dogs like Shrek often wait longer to be adopted. They want to spread the message that large dogs are lovable too and deserve a second chance.
Leah Mackey sharing a warm embrace with Shrek.
Related: Animal Humane Society Connects Pets with Young Readers
