Happy ending for special needs dog -- the only one left after shelter event
For four months, Eastwood was waiting for his chance to find a forever home.
The 70-pound red-coated Labrador retriever mix was found abandoned on the side of a road in December. He has a deformity in his leg, and veterinarians consider him a "special needs dog."
Luckily, the sweet 1-year-old pup got a second chance at Little Traverse Bay Humane Society, a no-kill shelter in Harbor Springs, Michigan. He was evaluated by a specialist, who believes the dog was born with the leg defect.
He doesn't need surgery right now, but somewhere down the road it may be required. The procedure is estimated to cost around $4,000, and workers at the shelter wanted potential owners to be aware of the responsibility.
Unfortunately, the warning must have turned a lot of families off.
The BISSELL Pet Foundation hosted an annual adoption event "Empty the Shelters" on Saturday, volunteering to cover the adoption fees for all pet owners. About 65 shelters across Michigan participated and 2,500 animals found homes — except Eastwood.
"One by one, each of our dogs available for adoption found homes -- except Eastwood," Jessica Evans, communications and marketing coordinator for Little Traverse Bay Humane Society, told CBS News. "He was the only one left. It was a little sad all of his buddies were gone."
Last week, the shelter found homes for 49 animals, a new record.
It was a happy occasion, but Evans couldn't help but feel sad for poor Eastwood.
"He's the nicest boy ever and he's still left here," she thought.
So she took a risk and posted Eastwood's story on Facebook Monday.
"Poor Eastwood is so lonely now that all of his pals have been adopted!" Evans wrote. "This amazing boy has a few health issues that need to be addressed (which is why we think he was abandoned initially, poor guy!), but this boy is so sweet, we know it will be well worth it."
Luckily, hundreds of people agreed.
More than 1,800 people spread the news about Eastwood and hundreds commented, searching for a perfect family for the pup.
Within an hour, people started sending the animal shelter questions. On Tuesday, the phones were ringing off the hook.
"It just blew up," Evans said. "We had over 80 applications come in."
After shuffling through dozens of papers and receiving several recommendations for potential pet owners, the shelter chose the perfect owners Tuesday afternoon: Stan Van Gundy, coach of the Detroit Pistons, and his family.
"Special thank you to BISSELL Pet Foundation for sponsoring Empty the Shelters," Kim Van Gundy, Eastwood's new mom, said in a statement. "If it were not for Empty the Shelters, our family would not have seen Eastwood. We always believe our animals find us."
On Monday, Eastwood will move out of the shelter and into his forever home with the Van Gundys in Detroit.
While Evans couldn't be happier for the dog, she hopes others who called about Eastwood will consider adopting another animal in need.
"There are animals across the country just like Eastwood," she said. "There are so many amazing, deserving animals all over the country that would love a second chance like he's been given."
