Imagine spending your life not only in a cage but in a dark recess of someone’s basement. This was a reality for a poodle named B.B., who was rescued from a North Carolina puppy mill by animal workers with the Humane Society of the United States. When she was found last September, B.B. was tiny and had clearly been impregnated over and over again.
“She was very tiny, and she looked like this helpless creature,” said Jessica Lauginiger, animal crimes manager at HSUS.
Upon being rescued, B.B. was transported to Cabarrus Animal Hospital along with the animals. However, she captured the attention of Brenda Tortoreo, the establishment’s receptionist. Tortoreo told The Dodo:
“B.B. was in a corner. She looked pitiful. She was scared to death… And I said, ‘That’s the one I’m going to take home.’”
Because B.B. spent her entire life in a tiny cage, she didn’t know what to make sense of freedom at first.
“I put B.B. down on the floor, and she kept going in circles — not running, but walking,” Tortoreo said. “I guess that’s all she knew to do. I put her in the living room, and to go into the hallway, she would not cross that border [between rooms]. I have two granddaughters who live with me, so I would put her in one of my granddaughters’ rooms, and she was terrified of rugs. She just wanted off the rug.”
The puppy had never seen the sun, so that was new, as well.
“She never knew what sun was,” Tortoreo explained. “She didn’t know what grass was, and she was terrified of it.”
However, space, plenty of cuddles, and an excess of love have resulted in B.B. slowly understanding that her life before was anything but normal.
“She runs around the house,” said Tortoreo. “She’s eating like crazy — she was originally about 3 and a half pounds, but I think she’s maybe about 10 pounds now. She loves the grass now, and she loves playing with the other dogs in the backyard.”
“About three weeks ago she started licking me — she’d never done that before,” Tortoreo added. “She’s really come out of her shell. She’s my little princess.”
B.B. was found during a puppy mill raid in North Carolina.
She had spent her entire life in a tiny cage, being impregnated repeatedly.
“She was very tiny, and she looked like this helpless creature.”
After being taken to Cabarrus Animal Hospital, B.B. was adopted by a receptionist named Brenda Tortoreo.
“B.B. was in a corner… She looked pitiful. She was scared to death…”
“And I said, ‘That’s the one I’m going to take home.’”
However, because she spent her entire life in the dark and in a tiny cage, B.B. was confused.
“I put B.B. down on the floor, and she kept going in circles — not running, but walking.”
“I guess that’s all she knew to do.”
“She never knew what sun was… She didn’t know what grass was, and she was terrified of it.”
After receiving plenty of love and freedom, B.B. now runs around the house.
“She’s really come out of her shell. She’s my little princess.”
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