Neglected Pit Bull Gets Left For Vultures

Dogs are affectionate and provide us with unconditional love. But do they always get the same in return? The sad truth is, animal cruelty and owner neglect do exist, like in the case of Lilo the Pit Bull puppy.

Surrounded by forest, the Phillips Avenue neighborhood in Greensboro, North Carolina, was familiar to wildlife. However, one wintery day, an ominous sight in the sky made the residents wonder if something bad was afoot.

People often associate vultures with death, since they can sense when an animal is dying. They are scavenging birds of prey that will circle high above the scene, waiting for an animal to take its last breath.

One of the residents made it a point to find out exactly why the vultures were circling in the sky. He traced the birds’ movements and finally pinpointed their activity to a neighbor’s backyard. The sight he saw was shocking to take in.

What the neighbors saw was definitely cause for concern and they couldn’t just ignore the puppy’s situation. The puppy was an eight-month-old Pit Bull called Lilo who was lying there, unresponsive. Apparently, she had spent most of her life chained to that tree.

Lilo looked like she was giving up on life. The vultures had been circling above for over a week and the weather was only getting colder. It was time for the neighbors to take action.

The authorities were on their way, but would they be able to help Lilo? Could ASPCA act in time to save her? Lilo’s life was hanging by a thread as she laid there in the cold. The vultures made matters worse as they inched closer and closer, waiting for their moment to feast.

By the time animal control arrived, an entire flock of vultures had gathered around Lilo. Two of them were perched on the plastic doghouse, so close to where she was chained. Animal control couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

Animal control wasn’t going to let the eight-month-old puppy die. They made their move and entered the backyard to scare the vultures away. A reporter was also there to document the case and took a photo that would later be instrumental in Lilo’s recovery.

The officers took Lilo to a shelter at Guilford County Animal Control. There she would be cared for, nurtured, and fed. There were still questions, however, about why she was neglected. Who were her owners? Why did they not care for her?

A few days turned into weeks. There were still no signs of Lilo’s owners coming to pick her up or calling for an update. Considering the traumatic experience Lilo had with them, perhaps this was a blessing in disguise.

An undeserving stigma haunts Pit Bulls as a breed. They have a reputation for being violent and problematic dogs because people often abuse them to train them for illegal dogfighting.

Many shelters have strict policies regarding Pit Bulls. They have a rule that people cannot adopt Pit Bulls. The shelter Lilo was at has this same policy. So, if her owners didn’t come to claim her, nobody could adopt her. Instead, the shelter would have to euthanize her.

Lilo had been at the shelter for weeks now and the shelter may have to resort to life ending measures. But is there really nothing that anyone can do? Lilo’s chance of surviving hung on a thread of one last option.

The photo from the reporter on the day of Lilo’s rescue played an important role in her life. An organization called the Merit Pit Bull Foundation saw the image of Lilo with the vultures and arrived at the shelter.

The Merit Pit Bull Foundation was able to find a foster home for Lilo. Thanks to them, Lilo was out of looming danger. A local couple, Kaena Lynch and Travis Henley, saw Lilo’s photo in the paper and decided to foster her.

When Kaena and Travis came to get Lilo, it was love at first sight. Not long after taking her in, they realized they didn’t want to be just a temporary home for her. They wanted Lilo to become a permanent family member.

Finally finding a forever family was great news for Lilo. However, this new life didn’t come without some challenges. Lilo had a traumatic past and was used to being chained outdoors all her life.

After Lilo spent some time recovering, Kaena and Travis decided it was time for her to receive training. Although they believed it was best for her, they also knew it came with additional risks.

Lilo’s traumatic past didn’t get in the way of her training! She took to it well and was incredibly well-behaved. After a year of recovery, Kaena and Travis said that her face seems like she is always smiling when you look at her.

Lilo has transformed from a malnourished, neglected puppy to a happy, healthy puppy with a loving family, including two dog friends. Kaena and Travis try to make up for her traumatic past and give her plenty of attention.

Kaena has explained that Lilo still has issues. “I cannot leave her in the backyard by herself, she comes to the door and cries. She really just wants to be with you,” Kaena said. This reaction is understandable since Lilo spent so much time neglected and chained alone in a backyard before.

Despite Lilo’s previous traumatic experiences, Kaena says, “She has never held a grudge for her past and loves everyone she meets.” Lilo has recovered to be a happy-go-lucky dog that savors life. She is also kind-hearted, caring, loving, a little quirky, and loves to be pampered!

Since Animal Control rescued her, Lilo has also started to help other dogs recover and get back on their feet. She has become an ambassador for at-risk Pit Bulls all around the world. Kaena and Lilo travel the country to different schools in order to change the stigma around Pit Bulls.

Lilo’s great recovery has also led her to train to become a therapy dog, similar to her sister Gemma. Therapy dogs provide emotional assistance to people in retirement homes, hospitals, schools, and disaster areas. They support rehabilitation by giving comfort and unconditional love in a way that only dogs can uniquely do.

Lilo has also been helping The Merit Pit Foundation and its mission. Founded in 2012, the Foundation aims to “improve the lives of bully-type dogs and the people who love them.” The Foundation educates the public about Pit Bulls, rescues Pit Bulls, and helps provide placements for at-risk Pit Bulls.

The Merit Foundation is also an advocate for adopting dogs instead of buying them from pet stores. Why is this important? Firstly, shelters across the United States euthanize tens of thousands of dogs each year because they can’t find homes for them.

People who breed dogs and sell them to pet stores have few regulations to prevent them from operating an unethical business. For this reason, puppy farms often exist. One definition of a puppy farm is “a dog breeding operation in which the dogs’ health is disregarded to maintain a low overhead and maximize profits.”

To understand just how bad puppy farms can be, here’s an example from 2014. Authorities saved over 100 dogs from a puppy farm in Tennessee, and all the dogs were suffering from various painful and untreated conditions. The rescue spokesman said the dogs had “eye infections, respiratory conditions, dental issues, severe matting that limited their mobility and vision, and urine-soaked, feces-caked fur.”

Despite the countless animals facing cruelty and neglect, stories like Lilo’s still exist to remind us that lives can be saved. Kaena is grateful the photo of Lilo and the vultures was taken so that Lilo could be rescued.

By sharing the valuable lesson about Pit Bulls in schools and alongside the Merit Pit Bull Foundation, Kaena and Travis hope it’ll save other dogs in the future. Dogs are known as “man’s best friend.” However, being best friends is not a one-way street. As much love and affection that dogs provide us, they deserve just as much in return!