Photography by Danny Fulgencio
On a beach in Galveston, a dog plays in the waves as her owners watch from the sand. She leaps through the shallow water, and her owners notice that her fur is growing back, and her eyes are clear from gunk. The transformation is amazing.
“Nobody would have pulled her out of the shelter in the condition that she was in,” owner Kim Armstrong says.
Pippy caught the family’s eye on the Dallas Animal Services website.
“She had a real cute face, and they just had a face shot of her,” Armstrong says.
Much like a Tinder date gone wrong, Pippy did not look like her photo from the website when they went to get her from curbside pickup. In fact, she had been scheduled for euthanasia.
“When they brought this dog into my car, she was covered from head to toe in mange,” Armstrong says. “She had no hair anywhere on her body except for her head. She smelled so bad.”
Armstrong received sponsorship from Dallas Pets Alive because animal services would only release a dog with such serious health issues to a foster rescue group.
The family had to wait until the following Monday to take her to the vet to get her checked out. Armstrong was just hoping the pup would make it to the appointment because her condition was worse than she had imagined.
Pippy takes medicine for her mange and heart condition. The pup also regained her hearing after receiving treatment for an inner ear infection.
Pippy won them over a few days before they started receiving inquiries for her adoption. “One night she decided she was going to sleep with us, and it sealed the deal for my husband,” Armstrong says. “She was the perfect leg occupant because she laid in one little spot with her head on the pillow.”
The family believes that was Pippy’s way of saying, “Don’t make me move again. I’m your dog.”
