Shelter Dog Meal Donation Count:

Learn More

Rescue Puppy Acts As Blind, Deaf Littermate’s Guiding Star

By: Dina Fantegrossi
Dina Fantegrossi is the Assistant Editor and Head Writer for HomeLife Media. Before her career in writing, Dina was a veterinary technician for more than 15 years.Read more
| February 26, 2020

Two uniquely bonded puppy siblings are ready to find their forever home together after being rescued from the streets of Louisiana. Star is deaf and nearly blind, but her brother, Denver proudly serves as her “guiding star”!

The story of Denver and Star begins like so many others. They were dumped, along with their mother and six other littermates in the rural south. All were taken in by a loving family who fell in love with the mama dog. They reached out to a local rescue in hopes of placing the puppies.

Photo via Helen Woodward Animal Center

The eight Terrier mix pups soon embarked on a cross-country journey into the capable hands of the Helen Woodward Animal Center in San Diego, California — a 1,900 mile road trip! 

Once there, the rescue team noticed that one of the pups — a female named Star — has special needs. The snow white puppy with a pink nose like chewed bubble gum is deaf and almost completely blind.

Screenshot via Helen Woodward Animal Center

Star often finds herself left out while her 12-week-old littermates romp and frolic. All except one, that is. To the delight of their caretakers, Denver refuses to leave his special sister behind.

According to a Facebook post, he keeps “a protective eye” on his vulnerable sister.

“Choosing Star as his main playmate, the two were rarely apart and when separated, Denver would come running back to love on Star and let her know he was there,” the post reads.

Screenshot via Helen Woodward Animal Center

Denver’s devotion to his sister may seem like a sacrifice on his part, but shelter staff say their relationship is pretty typical. They run and play like any average pups their age.

Star simply follows her brother from their bed to the food bowl to the outside play area. As long as he is nearby, she is never lost. With no training at all, Denver has instinctively become her personal guide dog.

“It’s really extraordinary,” Helen Woodward Adoption Services Manager Dora Dahlke said.  “We never stop learning from animals.  These two really can teach us all a thing or two about sibling love and how much we can achieve with the love of a good friend.”

All of the puppies are ready to be adopted, including Denver and Star who must find a home together. Interested pet parents can click here for details on adopting a pet.

The folks at the Helen Woodward Animal Center ask that you consider all the wonderful dogs in their care. If you are not in a position to adopt, you can help them continue to rescue special needs pets like Star by making a donation.

H/T to Fox News

Recent Articles

Interested in learning even more about all things dogs? Get your paws on more great content from iHeartDogs!

Read the Blog

Loading Checkout...

United StatesClose
Flag of United States
Powered by
duty and tax information for United States

Looks like your ad blocker is on.

×

We rely on ads to keep creating quality content for you to enjoy for free.

Please support our site by disabling your ad blocker.

Continue without supporting us

Choose your Ad Blocker

  • Adblock Plus
  • Adblock
  • Adguard
  • Ad Remover
  • Brave
  • Ghostery
  • uBlock Origin
  • uBlock
  • UltraBlock
  • Other
  1. In the extension bar, click the AdBlock Plus icon
  2. Click the large blue toggle for this website
  3. Click refresh
  1. In the extension bar, click the AdBlock icon
  2. Under "Pause on this site" click "Always"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Adguard icon
  2. Click on the large green toggle for this website
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Ad Remover icon
  2. Click "Disable on This Website"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the orange lion icon
  2. Click the toggle on the top right, shifting from "Up" to "Down"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Ghostery icon
  2. Click the "Anti-Tracking" shield so it says "Off"
  3. Click the "Ad-Blocking" stop sign so it says "Off"
  4. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the uBlock Origin icon
  2. Click on the big, blue power button
  3. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the uBlock icon
  2. Click on the big, blue power button
  3. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the UltraBlock icon
  2. Check the "Disable UltraBlock" checkbox
  1. Please disable your Ad Blocker
  2. Disable any DNS blocking tools such as AdGuardDNS or NextDNS

If the prompt is still appearing, please disable any tools or services you are using that block internet ads (e.g. DNS Servers).