JACKSON, Mich. — A Michigan boy found the perfect rescue dog -- a shelter puppy with the same birth defect.
Bentley Boyers, 2, was born with a cleft palate and has undergone two surgeries, WILX reported. His father, Brandon, was at an animal shelter in search of two chickens recently when he came across a pup with a cleft lip.
“He Facetimed me. He goes, ‘I think this one has a cleft lip’ and I said ‘get her’! We need her,” mother Ashley Boyers said. “To see him have something in common with a puppy means a lot ’cause he can grow up and understand that he and his puppy both have something that they can share in common.”
The two-month-old puppy’s name has not been released. The Jackson County Animal Shelter said it does not get a lot of puppies with that issue. They said she should not have future health problems, though.
“Her disability is really not holding her back, and as she grows, they’ll be able to see more if there’s any change that has to do with that. But, she’s really doing well,” said Animal Services Director Lydia Sattler. “She might look a little different than a normal dog would, but it’s not slowing her down at all.”