POLKTON, N.C. — When Bubba arrived at Anson County Animal Services in December 2021, the terrier mix was in rough condition, volunteer and animal advocate Heather Harrigan said.
"Bubba came in as a stray," Harrigan said. "He had a major axe wound on his head."
Today, she and other volunteers insist you wouldn't even know what he's been through, based on his personality and love for people.
"You can't even tell," Harrigan said. "Even for the 8-year-old that he is, he still has a playful and goofy side to him, which is really sweet, but then also can be affectionate and cuddly."
Bubba has been described as a "gentle giant." He's 65 pounds of love, Harrigan said.
That makes it even more heartbreaking for volunteers to see Bubba marking his 365th day in the shelter Friday.
Other shelter advocates say the facility's remote location makes it more difficult to showcase the animals, despite the hard work of staff and volunteers.
"The shelter is about 45 minutes outside of east Charlotte," Carol Jimenez, another volunteer, said. "A lot of people don't even know that this shelter exists... they have a really small, but mighty staff, and this staff, they do everything that they can to make sure that the animals in their care feel like they're at home while they're at the shelter."
Advocates are asking for Bubba to get a foster or a forever home.
"He does really well on a leash," Harrigan said. "Wonderful with dogs, wonderful with people, and just really looking to take that smile into his forever home."
Unfortunately, Bubba is not the only dog at the shelter with a sad history.
"Chloe and her gunshot wounds--unfortunately, she's one of six or seven dogs we had in the shelter in October or November who entered with gunshot wounds," Jessica Andrews, another volunteer said.
Volunteer notes show the 2-year-old white and black terrier mix has two scars on her back from gunshots. She was found behind a gas station.
"We were repeatedly seeing dogs coming in experiencing extreme neglect, abuse, axe wounds, gunshots, all of that," Andrews said.
"The condition that a lot of these dogs come in--it's really, really heartbreaking," said Carol Jimenez, a shelter advocate, said. "But to see them be able to thrive, even in the shelter environment, and... to be dog friendly, to be people friendly. And just to be ready to be in a home environment. It is one of those wins."
As far as long-timers go at the Anson County shelter, Speck actually surpasses Bubba. The 3-year-old Husky-Cattle Dog mix has spent more of her life in a kennel than not, according to her profile. On Dec. 19, she marked two years in a shelter. Volunteers say she likes people, including children, and has recently started warming up to other dogs.
How to help
Anson County Animal Shelter Advocates ask if people cannot adopt a dog, they might consider fostering a dog, volunteering with shelter tasks, or donating to fund medical expenses. Andrews said, since the county shelter does not have a veterinarian on staff, it has to book any services, like spaying or neutering, through a partner vet and pay out the shelter budget.
For those who might feel like it could be too difficult to be around so many animals in need, Andrews offers this perspective: "It can be so emotionally straining, but it's also really, really impactful and powerful. And if you're able to even do things, like go to the shelter once a month for 30 minutes and walk a few dogs like that, is impactful because it's giving dogs love and attention and affection and exercise that they desperately need."
Anson County Animal Shelter is located at 7257 U.S. Hwy 74, Polkton, NC. It is open to the public Monday through Friday, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. The shelter phone number is 704-994-2738. The shelter is closed Monday, Jan. 2, 2023 due to the holiday.
Contact Vanessa Ruffes at vruffes@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.