Hundreds of people wanted to adopt Narwhal after he was rescued from the streets of Missouri, but now the dog with an unusual birth defect has finally found an owner
An abandoned puppy whose unusual birth defect won the hearts of thousands has finally found a permanent home.
‘Narwhal’ was born with a second tail growing out of his head , and at 10 weeks old was found on a freezing Missouri street being looked after by an older dog.
He was taken to Mac’s Mission, a shelter that “specialises in special” including dogs with disabilities or that have suffered abuse.
Narwhal was born with an extra tail growing out of his head
After a vet confirmed the extra tail wasn’t causing the pup any harm, the organisation listed him for adoption and shared images of him on Facebook with the nickname ‘Narwhal the Little Magical Furry Unicorn’, a reference to two different creatures with horns on their foreheads.
They were instantly inundated with adoption requests from people who fell in love with Narwhal – so many in fact that staff became concerned the beagle mix was at risk of exploitation from those offering “giant” sums of cash for him.
Narwhal playing with a toy narwhal he was gifted (Image: Facebook)
Some fans were so desperate to take Narwhal home they began showing up at Mac’s Mission unannounced, and the poor pooch was even the target of death threats.
Eventually, the organisation decided the best thing to do for Narwhal’s safety was to keep him where he was. Mac’s Mission founder Rochelle Steffen has adopted him so that he can grow up in the shelter and help take care of other dogs who need a home.
Narwhal with his friends at the Mac’s Mission shelter (Image: Facebook)
“I had no intention initially of keeping him,” Ms Steffen said. “I didn’t want a puppy. But Narwhal is absolutely, exactly what we needed.
