In January 2021, we got a call about an older Cane Corso, sitting in a kitchen alone surrounded by dirty wee wee pads. The man who had him had no idea what to do with him; he was just trying to keep Murphy (who was named Titan at the time) safe from euthanasia as his late mother’s boyfriend had thrown him into a kill shelter after she died, stating he was extremely aggressive (a lie).
The mother and her boyfriend got “Titan” from a breeder when he was just a pup. They claimed that, ever since puppyhood, he was scared of the outdoors, and he was therefore never taken on walks or ever let outside in his life with them. He became a sad indoor dog. It was also clear he had suffered years of neglect and physical abuse.
We drove to Long Island the very next day to pick him up. He was terrified, as expected, and it took hours to get him outside and into the car. We were a brand new rescue with little experience and had no idea what we were getting ourselves into, but we knew we had to help him.
In foster, he started learning how to be a dog again. Against his will but crucial to his wellbeing, he started being taken outside on walks. The first few days he had his tail tucked. It took less than two weeks before he would get excited when he knew it was time for a walk - tail wagging, running to the door, excited to explore the great outdoors.
Murphy was adopted by a wonderful family in Massachusetts, where he now lives on a farm with his pup siblings and eats way better meals than we do! Murphy was the name given to him by his adopters to symbolize new beginnings. He is such a lucky boy and we are so proud of him!
