Dog Adopted After Five Years: Chester The Pit Bull Finds A Home After His Story Is a Viral Hit

A dog adopted after five years has his story making headlines to kick off the week. The pit bull mix spent the past five years in and out of animal shelters, and someone at the shelter he was last housed in decided to go an extra step to ensure people heard about the pup.

According to Mail Online, Chester was a resident of the North Fork Animal Welfare League in New York State. He is currently six-years-old, and he has been in and out of several shelters in the state since he was about a year old.

Gabby Stroup, the manager of the shelter, decided to make a special Facebook page and post Chester on it. The photo did not just feature the dog though. It also featured a sign, and it is the sign that caused the dog’s story to go viral.

“Why doesn’t anybody want me? I’ve been waiting 5 years. Everyone at the shelter tells me what a good boy I am. So why has no one adopted me? I promised to be good and love my new family. Please maybe you are my new family. I sit and wait for you to come.”

This Dog Was Finally Adopted After Five Years Of Waiting When His Photo Went Crazy On Facebook http://t.co/ya8bsLzhRq

— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) April 5, 2015

Stroup posted the photo on Facebook on Thursday. By Friday, the photo had been shared 6,000 times on social media. The post caused people to call in and email from the around world. People as far away as Australia sent in inquiries about Chester.

“It was crazy. I posted the original photo on the League’s Facebook page and by later that day there were over 6,000 shares. There were more phone calls than I can count; the phone just never stopped. People called from Illinois, North Carolina, South Carolina, Mississippi, Michigan, Oregon, New Jersey Wisconsin, Nova Scotia, Australia and more — people were tearing up as they called.”

By Friday afternoon, Chester’s new family made their own inquiry. Stroup shared the details about how Chester’s new forever home came about as well.

“A woman named Dana called me inquiring about him; a friend of hers from Michigan had shared Chester’s picture on her page. Dana and I talked about Chester for a bit; she wanted to talk it over with her family. They came and met him and it is just a perfect match.”

Chester went home with his new family on Saturday, and he spent his first holiday in his new home on Easter Sunday. His page updated Chester’s fans with some new photos of him with his family, and another new family photo went up on Sunday.

Adi Dor, Dana’s husband, said that the adoption was “meant to be.” The family felt a connection with Chester from the moment they met him.

Chester now has a home, but he had to wait a full five years for a family to adopt him. Joseph Pinciaro with the Suffolk Times shared Chester’s full story with his readers.

“Chester came to NFAWL in 2010 and had a glimmer of hope of being adopted not long after. Like many dogs who get adopted, he found a home for a little while, but it just didn’t work out. After that, shelter volunteers brought him out to parades and featured him through social media. Chester’s “advocate” — a Shoreham man with three dogs whose wife (quite understandably) won’t let him bring the dog home — comes in and checks on him periodically. Volunteers can regularly be seen walking Chester along with the shelter’s other 17 dogs in the area.”

Chester is a pit bull mix. That likely caused the long period of time it took for his adoption. Pit bulls have a bad reputation. Many consider pit bulls too violent. However, Chester had a loveable and fun demeanor. He earned the nickname “The Court Jester” at the shelter.

Not all pit bull mixes are violent or dangerous. A previous Inquisitr report shared the story of a pit bull mix that a cop encountered on a street in Florida. The dog had escaped his home yard through an open gate.

Deputy Mark Elsaid shared about the encounter, and the dog’s story was also shared on social media.

“[The pup] didn’t want to terrorize the neighborhood, he just got out of his gate, and just wanted to go and be friends with everybody. This dog just wanted to lick the officer and love him. Not all dogs are bad, especially pit bulls. We don’t always hear the best things about them, but this story shows they can be really loving and friendly. [Red] just wanted to play!”

Chester found his home because of the power of social media. Not all animals located in shelters are so lucky. If you have the room in your home for a dog or cat, visit an animal shelter in your area to adopt a pet like Chester.

On the League’s Facebook page, “Chester” shared his own plea for other animals at the shelter on Sunday.

“Happy Easter! I am loving life I cannot thank everyone who shared me enough. I found the perfect family! Now I am spending my very first holiday with a family in a home! If you have room in your home to help one of my friends who are still waiting please check out link below for the dogs at the shelter I came from. If you don’t have room for one of them please just continue to share. They all deserve what I now have thanks to all of you! I’m off to enjoy my family!”

The North Fork Animal Welfare League plans to use Chester’s Facebook page to help out other long time animal residents of their shelter to find homes like they found for Chester.

[Photo: Chester’s Facebook]