Dog born without front legs finds forever home after being abandoned

A puppy who was born without functional front legs has found a new home and new way to get around after being abandoned on the streets of San Francisco.

Daffodil, as the Chihuahua was named, was brought to the San Francisco SPCA by a good Samaritan who found her near a busy intersection. She had been left in a soggy cardboard box, the man told the shelter, and even though some people would stop as they noticed her, they would quickly walk away after noticing her birth defect. The young man brought the dog to the shelter when he realized she needed more care than he could provide.

The San Francisco SPCA was able to get Daffodil a custom-built prosthetic to help her get around and now the little pup is scooting around with all the enthusiasm and energy of a normal puppy.

In a blog post about Daffodil, the San Francisco SPCA said it was an emotional moment watching the puppy get to run for the first time in its life.

"Just like that: she was given the chance, and she just went for it," it wrote.

For many shelter animals, this would be more than enough of a happy ending, but Daffodil's story did not end there. Throughout the process, the San Francisco SPCA had been sending photos of Daffodil to the team at OrthoPets, the company that made her prosthetic. One of the OrthoPets employees became so enamored with Daffodil, that she wanted to adopt the little dog even though she lived in Colorado. The employee recently flew out to California to take Daffodil home, where she will provide a lifetime of loving care.