When Dave Meinert adopted Pegasus, a Great Dane that was rescued from a breeder, he was given some sad news; his beloved girl was likely going to die very soon, and even if she lived she would wind up blind and deaf.
Pegasus was taken from a terrible breeding operation after the rest of the puppies in her litter died at birth or soon after during puppyhood. Pegasus was the only one to make it past that stage where they can leave their mothers, but veterinarians that wanted to help rehabilitate her knew that she would face a slew of health problems from her poor genes. According to vets, she would likely become deaf and blind if she were to survive into adulthood.
“For me, she had already been born — nothing was going to change that. By rescuing her, at least I could be certain that she wouldn’t be discarded,” Meinert said of his decision to adopt her.
In response, Meinert decided to make their time together beautiful. He got the idea to create videos of her almost everyday for the first five months, and since he’s a filmmaker the footage is breathtaking in time lapse form. The video went viral when it was first posted in 2015 on YouTube, but since it’s so short few people know the rest of the story.
Since Pegasus’ future seemed so bleak, most people presume that she has probably already passed on; however, the good news is that she is still with us! Even aside from her health problems, she has had a tumultuous life since she started out life with a terrible breeder, dying siblings and a sick mom, but on top of it all, Meinert was unable to keep Pegasus in his care because of his hectic schedule.
When Meinert adopted Pegasus, she had skin allergies, diarrhea, and was sick all of the time. Though her condition got better, Meinert worried that his erratic schedule was making her existing stomach problems worse, so he knew he needed to rehome her until he was back to a normal schedule. He found Monique Burrows, an animal lover that has cared for many special needs dogs and has an affinity for Great Danes, and what started out as a foster home became a permanent home.
Burrows has other Great Danes in her home, but at the time that she welcomed Pegasus into her home it was just Luna, and the two huge dogs quickly became inseparable.
“It’s like their souls had met in a previous life and they were merely catching up,” Burrows said.
Once the video was posted in 2015, Pegasus was one and a half years old and already partially blind and deaf, had kidney problems, and sometimes would fall when she would run. Burrows makes sure to take her to the vet every time something new arises, and although Pegasus is a sweet and happy dog, Burrows doesn’t push her too much and instead leaves her at home for some of the bigger outings.
It’s amazing that Pegasus is still alive, albeit on borrowed time, but Meinert and Burrows still caution others on buying dogs from breeders that are irresponsible and not reputable. They feared that the video would encourage people to go out and buy Great Dane puppies, when really that is the opposite message they wanted to convey because for Pegasus to even be alive right now, all of her siblings had to die. It’s a heartbreaking narrative, but this is the reality with most breeders in the world that don’t care about their dogs or the future of the puppies.
As for Pegasus, Burrows said,
“I just want her to live for however long she has, and to do whatever I can to make sure she receives only the best of the best to improve her chances. If love alone could save her, she would live forever.”
Watch the adorable video below to see Pegasus grow up.
