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By Julie Sabin

Gunny

Your past does not define you.

In the case of a 4-year old pit bull named Gunny, this statement rings true. One look at him reveals a missing hind leg and scar-riddled body, stark reminders of a dark past. But equally apparent are his kind eyes, huge grin and perpetually wagging tail.

Most likely used as “bait” in an illegal dog fighting ring, Gunny triumphed over the horrific start to his life and has gone on to inspire all who encounter him. He’s a shining example of the power of forgiveness, trust and perseverance.

The Rescue

In May 2008, a Good Samaritan found a severely injured, emaciated pit bull on the side of a road and took him to an animal rescue organization. Turned away because the organization refused to help pit bulls, the dog ended up at a county animal control facility outside Greenville, S.C.

The animal control sent out a “plea for help” e-mail to rescue organizations, listing the dogs that would be euthanized once their mandatory waiting period expired. A volunteer for Mid-Atlantic Great Dane Rescue saw a photo of the pit bull on the list and was appalled that the poor pup would suffer in pain for five days until he could be put to sleep. She called her friend, Amy Murphy, a volunteer for the all-breed rescue, North Mecklenburg Animal Rescue (NMAR) and asked for help.

Murphy knew NMAR’s emergency medical funds had just been spent caring for another badly injured rescue dog. There was no money left to help the pit bull so a new plan was hatched. Amy’s friend would drive the two and half hours to the animal control shelter and pick up the pit bull and deliver him to Huntersville’s LakeCross Veterinary Hospital where his suffering would end. “We really thought we were going to be putting him to sleep,” says Murphy.

In a surprising turn of events, LakeCross veterinarian, Dr. Kay Wahl called Murphy and begged her to allow the dog to be saved because of his wonderful demeanor – even coming up with low-cost estimates for the medical procedures he needed. After much discussion between the veterinary hospital, NMAR and Murphy, it was decided that NMAR would attempt to raise the funds needed to treat the dog. Murphy volunteered to give the dog a temporary home after the surgery and drove to LakeCross to meet him.

Unprepared for the extent of Gunny’s injuries, Murphy broke down in tears when she first saw the dog. His mangled hind leg was swollen three times its normal size and dog bite puncture wounds covered his body. His flea-invested, chocolate-colored coat was so dirty that she was sure he had a contagious skin condition.

As the dog eagerly licked Murphy’s hands and legs, Murphy listened to Dr. Wahl explain how the entire staff had handled the pit bull, testing his temperament to see what kind of negative issues the rescue organization would have to deal with. Amazingly, there were none. “She said, ‘Isn’t he beautiful? He has scars that will never go away, yet he smiles, he wags and he loves us strangers without a second thought,’” says Murphy. “This dog is here to be an ambassador. He loves life and is willing to fight for it.”

Gunny with his new owner, Amy Murphy.

A Community Comes Together

When Murphy arrived back home, she immediately went to work on raising funds for the dog she called Gunny, named for strong, loyal and brave Marine gunnery sergeants. She e-mailed Gunny’s story to everyone she knew and requested help.

Before long,the e-mail went viral. Donations poured in from everywhere, even from the furthest corners of the country. Visits to NMAR’s website skyrocketed and fan mail addressed to Gunny overflowed in their post office box.

After Gunny’s surgery to amputate his hind leg, NMAR hosted a “Meet and Greet” party at The Wine Vault in Charlotte to thank all his supporters. More than 100 people attended to wish Gunny well.

Unfortunately, the amputation would not be Gunny’s only surgery. Shortly after the party, Gunny was re-admitted to the hospital for two more major surgeries to repair crushing injuries to his throat as a result of the dog bites. Again, the community stepped up to the plate and helped with the medical costs. All totaled, more than $3,000 was raised by Gunny’s caring fans.

Gunny the Community Activist

Now, Gunny gives back to the community that generously gave to him. Murphy adopted Gunny and the pair has a schedule packed with appearances. Acting as the official spokesdog for NMAR, Gunny appears with Murphy at events to raise public awareness about the rescue and their fundraising needs, as well as dog fighting and animal abuse. Beth Phillips, President of NMAR says Murphy and Gunny’s involvement with the rescue organization has been invaluable. “Beyond the extensive fundraising they’ve done, they have gotten people involved in the rescue effort that would never have known about NMAR otherwise.”

Gunny also plays the role of NMAR’s socialization assistant, helping to rehabilitate some of the rescue’s toughest cases by modeling perfect social skills. “He’s very insightful about dogs.” Murphy says. “He knows how to interact with them and he knows how to calm them down.”

Occasionally, Gunny works with another organization, Max’s Wish, in their program designed to discourage Charlotte’s at-risk youth from engaging in illegal dog fighting and to teach them to be responsible dog owners.

Gunny the Teacher

Murphy’s career as an Occupational Therapist in Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools led to another community outreach project for Gunny. This one involves school children at Charlotte’s Lebanon Road Elementary School.

What I Learned from Gunny …

Several students in Ms. Karen Belk’s fourth grade class at Charlotte’s Lebanon Road Elementary School share the lessons they learned from meeting Gunny this year.

“I learned a lot of things such as never stop dreaming. I never had a dog, but when I met Gunny and found out how he lost his leg and how Ms. Murphy helped him, I learned how great it feels to help someone and also that Gunny is very brave. No one should be treated like that. Gunny is nice and very smart. I would love to have him as a dog.” – Desta

“Gunny is an inspiration to all of us. He will teach people and help dogs everywhere. Without animal rescue, Gunny would have been bait.” – Matthew

“I learned about how pets are treated unfairly and used for dog fighting. No dog should be used in dog fighting.” – Zach

“It is generous to help puppies and many dogs. By just donating a little amount, it will mean a BIG difference to them.” – Chase

“We should take good care of animals.” – Liya

“I learned that dogs have feelings.” – Kurtis

“Helping or assisting people or animals is fun and nice. I think helping helps our community.” – Jakes

“All animals must be safe. No animal should be harmed...” – Jayleen

“Even though they are animals, it doesn’t mean that they don’t need love or a caring family.” – Mackenzie

“When you help someone else, it pays off later in life.” – Mariya

“If you make a goal, you should work to make it happen. If you try to win something and you don’t make it, just know that you tried your best.” – Alma

Gunny has become a fixture at the school’s character education assemblies and assists in handing out perseverance awards to students chosen by their peers for exemplifying the trait. Additionally, he visits classrooms for autistic students where he sits patiently as the class practices manipulation skills and following directions by retrieving notes from the zippered pockets of his homemade vest.

Fifth grade teacher, Patrice Wingrove, saw a difference in her students after Gunny began visiting the school and interacting with the kids. “My class certainly learned the meaning of perseverance after learning about Gunny,” she says. “Just because life is hard, it doesn’t mean you have to become hard and give up on life, and I see some of them working just a bit harder when things get tough in class.”

Students also learned important lessons about compassion and community service when they participated in Gunny’s Pennies for Puppies drive – a competition between classes to see who can bring in the most spare change to raise funds for animal rescue. Enthusiasm for the contest motivated the students to participate in specially designed reading, writing, math and social studies activities. And, teachers reported positive results.

Gunny the Ambassador

Dr. Wahl’s prediction of Gunny’s ambassador status has come true. Not only is he an ambassador for animal rescue and positive character traits, he is an ambassador for his breed, the American Pit Bull Terrier. People have told Murphy their opinions about pit bulls were changed after meeting Gunny and now they defend the breed in conversations with others.

But, Murphy says she still encounters people who shy away from Gunny because he’s a pit bull. And to them, she says, “Pit bulls are naturally great dogs and only as a result of extreme and abusive measures can they become the dogs profiled negatively in the news.” She hopes everyone who meets Gunny sees the true nature of his breed. “Gunny is the epitome of what a pit bull is like,” she says. “The ones you see on the news, that’s not the norm. That’s the exception.”

A Celebrity of Sorts

Interest in Gunny continues to spread. He’s appeared on television several times and in January, he was featured in an USA Today article titled, “True Stories of Heroic Dogs.” Murphy blogs about Gunny’s adventures on NMAR’s website and he even has his own Facebook page with over 500 fans.

Last October, during a search for online pet food coupons, Murphy discovered Natural Balance’s World’s Most Amazing Dog contest. The contestant with the most votes from the public would win one year of free dog food. Murphy entered Gunny in the contest and asked her animal-loving friends to vote. Word travelled and Gunny received votes from around the world. “We literally had every continent except Antarctica voting for him,” says Murphy.

Gunny won the contest, awarding him the title “World’s Most Amazing Dog 2009” and the year’s worth of free food went to his foster sister, Hope, who requires a special diet. On New Year’s Day, Murphy represented Gunny on the Natural Balance float in the Rose Parade in California.

Murphy credits Gunny’s grudge-free attitude as the reason for all the attention. “With all the stuff that’s happened to him, if there’s any dog that has a right to not have a great attitude, it would be him,” she says. “Yet, he’s nicer than some dogs that have had a posh life. I think people are pretty amazed by his forgiving attitude, his spirit, and his courage.” paw