Beagles are, unfortunately, one of the breeds most often used in laboratory testing because they are docile and trustworthy no matter what.
According to research, more than 60,000 dogs are used as laboratory dogs for animal testing every year in the United States. [1]
As a result, these dogs never get a chance to step outside their cage, walk on grass, feel love, or even experience what it actually means to be a dog.
A Beagle named Dora, the main protagonist of this story, was one of those laboratory dogs until she was finally rescued by One Tail at a Time, a Chicago-based animal rescue.
Meet Dora
Dora, an eight-month-old Beagle, was one of the many Beagles that One Tail at a Time animal rescue managed to save once they were “retired” from lab testing.
Just like the other lab dogs, Dora simply didn’t know how to be just a dog.
“She had only been known so far in her life by the number tattooed inside her ear,” Kimberly Thomas, Marketing Manager from One Tail at a Time, told The Dodo.
These laboratory dogs are never even given a proper name, simply distinguished by a number tattooed on their ear – because they are not treated like proper dogs.
“For a lab Beagle who has lived her whole life inside one building, experiencing new things, like stairs, is scary,” Kim said. Dora had to learn to use the stairs and walk outside, but thankfully, her foster parents were helping her so much.
Samantha, Dora’s foster mom, said that during her first day home, Dora was so nervous that she just crawled around on her belly.
Dora the Beagle won the hearts of the internet by experiencing her first time going for a walk. Although she was completely scared, Dora was so brave for trying.
View this post on Instagram
Dora’s Update
After only a couple of weeks at the foster home, Dora was thriving and gaining more confidence each day.
Soon came the day of Dora’s spay appointment. Her foster mom sadly couldn’t take her to her early-morning appointment, so the two other One Tail at a Time members of the foster community, Laura and Luke, stepped up.
“Luke and Laura have been a part of our foster community for the last year after the passing of their beloved beagle they had for 12 years. They helped out Dora’s foster mom by bringing her to an early morning spay appointment and having a sleepover the night before, however they quickly realized they couldn’t let her go,” the Chicago-based rescue wrote in their Instagram post.
She melted their hearts and won them forever, so they adopted her!
In her forever home, Dora completely came out of her shell. She is now the happiest, silliest, and sweetest dog ever.
“I think something that I’ve loved about her since we’ve gotten to know her is that she’s eager to anyone and anything, even though she has started out being very anxious and nervous about a lot of things. You can see how she’s truly comfortable,” Laura said.
One thing they learned about Dora is that she loves to walk on two legs like a little human everywhere. It has become her habit.
Other than that, she is super comfortable, loveable, and basically living her best life ever – the complete opposite of how she was when they rescued her from the lab.
References:
- Tepper, S. D. (2022), Going big for beagles, The Humane Society of the United States. Retrieved April 18, 2023 from https://www.humanesociety.org/news/going-big-beagles
