U.S. Olympic skier Gus Kenworthy traveled to Arlington this past Sunday to adopt a puppy he first met during the Winter Games earlier this year.
The heartwarming moment at the Animal Welfare League of Arlington in Shirlington was captured on video by Humane Society International, which worked with Kenworthy to rescue the puppy — now named “Birdie” — and 90 other dogs from a dog meat farm in South Korea.
“At the time, the newborn Birdie was too young to travel with the other rescued dogs,” HSI said in a press release. “Once old enough, she and two of her siblings traveled to AWLA, one of HSI’s many shelter partners around the world, where Gus adopted her.”
“In March 2018, Gus adopted Beemo, who had been rescued from the same dog meat farm,” the press release also notes. “Sadly, Beemo died in May from a heart condition. Gus’s adoption of Birdie honors the memory of Beemo: she is named after one of Beemo’s favorite pastimes — bird-watching.”
Kenworthy and AWLA both recently wrote about the adoption on social media.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BmAAcoXFxia/
We are so happy that Canela, who recently arrived at AWLA from a S. Korean dog meat farm through Humane Society…
Posted by Animal Welfare League of Arlington on Friday, August 3, 2018