Back in June 2009 Kona showed up
on my doorstep as a bettered hungry four month old puppy. He was first
discovered by my roommate Brittany and affectionately named Kona. The moment
Kona and I laid eyes on each other all bets were off. We were instantly in love
with each other’s existence. What I quickly learned after taking Kona to the
vet however was how tragic his life was before he found us.
There was evidence of severe
abuse and neglect. The veterinarian let me know that if Kona had not found us
he probably would have soon died of starvation. It was hard to tell how skinny
he was because of his thick fur but he was dangerously underweight. Beneath his
matted coat Kona had cigarette burns all over his body as well as dog bites.
The veterinarian informed me that Kona was something that gangs in our area
liked to call a bait dog. Dogs who have been deemed useless and thrown into a
pit with other dogs to attack and chew on to build the confidence of fighting
dogs. She said that Kona most likely escaped and found himself in our yard
and on our front step. At the time Kona was only a small four month old
puppy. I'll let that sink in.
My heart sank. I felt like a
blind person seeing for the first time. This was my first experience seeing a
dog who was subjected to such torture. I had barely even heard of dog fighting
before this and had never rescued a dog. Growing up we always had pet store
bought puppies or puppies directly from breeders. My ignorant self could not
even begin to wrap my mind around what the veterinarian was educating me about.
Someone by choice chose to take a
puppy and throw them in a pit to be attacked and possibly killed. A puppy
killed was high reward for the murdering dog who knew no other life but to kill
for its master. The cigarette burns were most likely intended to make Kona mean
as he got older and if he lived through his bait trials would grow up to be a
fighter himself.
At this point I said many
obscenities out loud in front of the vet. It was a release of how confused and
small my world had been until now.
At that moment I scooped Kona up
and I never let him go again. That was 7 years ago.
Besides meeting my husband, Kona
is the best thing that's ever happened to me.
Kona is not perfect. I've had to
do a lot of behavioral training with him because of his abuse. His rescue meant
work but it was so worth it.
But this is what Kona has been. He
has been instrumental in shaping my life and directing my path in the direction
it has gone. He has taught me about patience, love, growth, strength,
endurance, joy, and what it means to fight for someone's life. He has
especially taught me what it means to keep moving forward when all I want
to do sometimes is move back. He sure chose the right doorstep 7 years ago and
I didn't realize then how much of a hero he would become in my life.
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