15-year-old dog finally tastes freedom after spending life chained outside house
A 15-year-old dog whose entire existence consisted of being shackled outside his owner's house has been given a new name and a new life.
In the past few days, the newly christened Bear has been bathed, pedicured, taken to the vet, slurped a Puppucino at Starbuck's and walked on a beach.
See photos of Bear:
"He's a good dog," Robert Messeri, a volunteer at the animal group Guardians of Rescue, told InsideEdition.com Monday night. "He needs a good home."
The black lab mix, with a dusting of gray in his whiskers, had been tethered all of his to a doghouse outside a Long Island, New York, home. A concerned neighbor had called the organization saying the animal was always chained up in the yard, no matter the weather.
The elderly dog, Misseri said, had been hobbled like that since he was a puppy.
When Misseri and his colleagues recently arrived at the residence, Bear was ecstatic to see them.
Usually, dogs at the end of a heavy chain are scared, protective and isolated, he said.
Bear wagged his tail. "This guy was just like, 'Hey guys!'
"We knew we that couldn't sleep at night while he was outside on that chain," Misseri said.
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The volunteers were able to persuade the owner to surrender the dog.
"We convinced the owner that it was the right thing to do," Misseri said. "We determined that he had some worms and he had arthritis," and he needed medical care and a nice, warm place live out the sunset of his dog days.
So Bear is now fit and clean and dewormed. He is living at a Save-A-Pet shelter on Long Island and is cleared for adoption.
Misseri says the best fit for Bear would be an older couple with loving hearts and a comfortable home. Perhaps a place where other animals live.
"He's friendly," Misseri says. "He's good with other dogs."
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