New Year, New Start for Formerly Chained Dog

Kora had never experienced life off her chain.

PETA’s fieldworkers started visiting the gentle dog at her rural North Carolina home in 2012, first to give her a custom-built doghouse, along with straw to keep her warm and to spread over the mud that surrounded her, and then to clean her always-dirty food and water bowls, and deliver a toy and some affection to help ease her loneliness.

Kora got so excited to see our fieldworkers that she pranced around, and she relished the attention they gave her—she longed for affection. PETA asked Kora’s owner (we would say “guardian,” but guardians don’t chain their dogs) if we could find her an indoor home, but her owner always refused to sign her over to us. With no laws against chaining in the area, there was little that we could do except keep visiting her and doing whatever we could to make her life a little less miserable.

At some point, Kora was given away to another family, and PETA lost track of her—that is, until this year during Christmas week. Just by chance, we found beautiful Kora in a new “home” but the same familiar situation—chained amid mud and filth, with barely a drop of water for her to drink. We also found that a chain had been wrapped around her neck so tightly that it had become partially embedded in her skin. There was no way of knowing how long she had suffered like that, waiting for someone to notice.

Kora’s new owner agreed that she needed more care than he could provide and surrendered her. Sweet Kora let us remove the heavy chain from around her neck, treat her wound, and give her a much-needed bath. Even though she was in pain, she soaked up the attention—which was likely the most she had ever received in her entire life.

One of PETA’s dedicated foster families took Kora in, and the intelligent dog seemed to know instantly that she should play gently with her foster mom’s cats and children and go outside to relieve herself. And of course, she still constantly looks for a lap to snuggle on. Kora loved her first real Christmas, complete with a tree, wrapping paper to play with, and her own new toys. And now, in the new year, she’s ready to find a “forever home” that will give her the new life that she deserves.

Kora weighs about 40 pounds and is approximately 3 years old. She has been spayed and will be vaccinated and microchipped before she moves into her forever home. Her foster mom reports that she loves children, dogs, and cats and is naturally curious and gentle, not to mention extremely loyal. In short, Kora is perfect.

Are you the forever family that she has waited for so long? E-mail us at [email protected] for more information on adopting Kora.