Charlotte, NC - rehoming due to domestic violence :(

[sistery]

Hi, my pit bull and I have lost our home because of domestic violence.

KING.jpg

My ex boyfriend abused me for over a year until August 14th when I got
the courage to call the police. Due to the severity of the charges,
my ex is still in jail with a $50,000 bond. The apartment we all
lived at was in my name but I had to move out due to safety concerns.
Even though he is still locked up, I am afraid of retaliation from his
family and friends so I have been living with friends while I save up
the money to move. I currently live in Charlotte, NC and am moving
out of state in 1-2 weeks. One of the hardest parts
of all has been giving up my dog, unfortunately the friends I am
staying with cannot accommodate a dog. King is currently staying in a
temporary shelter set up through the Police Department and Animal
Control called "Safe Haven for Animals" which watches the pets of
domestic violence victims for up to 6 weeks while they seek new
permanent housing. King has already been there for three weeks, and I
have nowhere he can stay. I am terrified they are going to put my
dog to sleep.

Let me tell you a little bit about King. King is approximately 4
years old. A little over a year ago, I had been begging my boyfriend
to get me a puppy when one day he went to take the trash out and came
back inside holding King saying "look babe, I got you a dog!". King
was filthy, covered in open wounds, and dehydrated. Apparently he was
roaming the neighborhood and my boyfriend spotted him and brought him
inside. I was absolutely terrified of the him, I'd never really been
around pit bulls and in his condition he was a little intimidating
(until I fed him some turkey and I became his new best friend). We
called Animal Control, and they returned him to his owners (our
neighbors). Over the next few months we found King wandering the
neighborhood several more times, until Animal Control said they would
no longer return the dog to the owner if he was picked up again.
Because of his breed he would not be adopted out. The officer said
either he would be put to sleep, or we could take the dog right there
and keep him. That's how King became a member of our household.

King spent his life with his prior on a 5 foot chain outside, he was
not allowed inside the house. He had no cover from the rain, which
caused fungus to grow all over his skin and inside his mouth and
resulted in open sores and major hair loss. He had cuts on his face
and legs that went untreated and developed staph infections. When his
old owners fed him, they threw out a bag of trash and let him dig
through to find scraps. When we got him, the vet said in his current
condition he was in pain and was suffering.

The vet fixed him up, and he began his new life eating REAL dog food,
sleeping in the bed with us, and getting spoiled rotten with playtime
and toys. My ex boyfriend did not allow me to leave the house really,
or talk to anyone (including my family!!) so for over a year King was
my only and my best friend. I know I did the right thing by calling
the police and putting a stop to things, I know it saved my life. But
it's caused me to lost almost everything: I lost my jobs, I lost my
home, I lost my furniture, I'm losing my city and the life I had
here... Please help me so I don't lose my dog. I can't provide him
with a home any longer, but it is devastating to think he will be put
to sleep in 3 weeks if he does not find a new home. Ideally I'd like
to be able to get him back once I find permanent housing, but it's
more important to me that he is not put to sleep, so if a loving home
is available I would want him to go there. Please let me know if you
can help adopt him out, find someone to foster him, or just forward
this email to anyone who might be able to help. The no-kill shelters
and pit bull rescues in Charlotte are all full and unable to help at
this time. I'm very worried for him.

Thank you,
King

KING.jpg

[mnp13]

I'm so sorry to read your story. If you are moving out of state in two weeks, why can't you take him with you then? Do you have housing lined up where you are going to already? Perhaps someone here can help you find dog friendly housing so that you can keep him.

[iluvk9]

I am very sorry for your situation, but YOU HAVE MY HIGHEST REGARDS FOR GETTING YOURSELF OUT OF THAT SITUATION!!!! May you have GREAT THINGS in your life now!

[HappyChick]

It is wonderful that you had the courage to get out of that situation!

Have you asked Safe Haven to help you find a dog friendly apartment to rent elsewhere? Maybe the domestic violence programs in the state/county you are wanting to move to could help you find a dog friendly place to go. In the town I live in, there is a DV program that will pay your rent for a period of time while you get on your feet. Please contact Domestic Violence groups, I'll bet they can help. I read up on Safe Havens and according to what I read, they will not put King to sleep, but you will have to move him when his time is up there. There might be a Safe Haven for Animals in the area you are moving to as well. That would buy you more time.

Grace really needs to chime in here as she is our resident expert on DV.

Good luck!

[amazincc]

Update??? Have you found a solution/temporary home for King yet???