Hi Humans,
This past Thursday, May 3, we observed National Specially-abled Pets Day, which celebrates amazing, heroic pets that are not as abled as the rest of their furry friends. This day also helps educate the public about caring for disabled pets and about the importance of finding homes for orphaned, specially-abled pets. Specially-abled Pets Day used to be recognized as Disabled Pets Day until Founder Colleen Paige felt that the name carried a negative connotation. She wanted to take the emphasis off of “disabled” because these animals are, in fact, very able. So, in 2006, Specially-abled Pets Day became nationally and internationally known.
To honor this day, we found some cute, tear-jerking, inspiring photos online thanks to Animal Planet and Carli Davidson’s Pets with Disabilities photography project.
1. Cute. Meet Little Man Rue. He is paralyzed from the waist down due to a spinal disorder. This does not stop Little Man Rue from fully enjoying his life and looking so darn cute.
2. Tear-Jerking. Meet Inky. Despite being abused early on his life, he is still good-natured and loving. He is even used a therapy dog for people.
3. Inspiring. Meet Nixon the Pug and Diego the blind Chihuahua. Diego uses Nixon as his seeing eye dog by following the tapping of his nails as they explore new environments. If Nixon could talk, we know he would say that he doesn’t mind helping his friend out at all.
4. Adoption. One of National Specially-abled Pets Day’s goals is to educate people about animals that are special like Little Man Rue, Inky and Diego. All deserve the same love and affection as fully abled animals.
For more information on adopting a special needs or any companion animal, visit your local Humane Society or ASPCA. You can also find more information about National Specially-abled Pets Day here.
Finally, I will leave all of you humans with this quote from Colleen Paige, “I have no eyes to see you. I have no ears to hear you. I have no legs to run to you. But what I do have … is plenty of love.”
Good Human.