Picasso and Newt are not only connected by an intimate friendship. Both dogs have disfigured faces. But together they enjoy life to the fullest.
Eugene/Oregon – Love and friendship know no borders. This does not only apply to relationships between people. Animals also form an intimate bond with each other. Probably the best example of this are the dogs Picasso and Newt. Because the two four-legged friends share the same fate: they have disfigured faces.
Her appearance puts many people off. But not Liesl Willhardt. She is the founder and director of Luvable Dog Rescue. The organization takes care of dogs that are difficult to adopt due to their appearance, illnesses or similar. She brought Picasso and Newt together. This resulted in a wonderful friendship.
Friendship between dogs: “Picasso liked Newt from the start”
Picasso joined Liesl Willhardt in Oregon in 2017. There he lives with the animal rights activist, her family and other animals on a property of around 55 hectares. Five-year-old Picasso was born with a twisted snout. One side of the jaw grew more than the other, resulting in a distorted look very similar to the artwork of his namesake, Pablo Picasso. Such a malformation occurs not only in dogs, but also in other animals. She doesn’t hurt Picasso. But an adoption is difficult because of his different appearance.
It is similar in the case of the one-year-old Newt. He’s missing the entire upper jaw. A bite from his mother resulted in the horrible wound. “It was a miracle that Newt survived as a baby because it would have been very difficult for him to be breastfed by his mother at all,” says Liesl Willhardt, who adopted the young dog in 2021.
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For Picasso and Newt it was love at first sight. “Picasso liked Newt from the start because Newt likes to play and wrestle and is so good natured. This friendship deepened as Newt matured,” says the proud owner. The American shares pictures and videos of the two on Instagram. Picasso even has his own Instagram account where he has over 274,000 followers. Newt also helped Picasso deal with the grief. His brother Pablo had died. “When Pablo died, it was absolutely heartbreaking. They were so close,” says his mistress. A German namesake of Pablo did the unbelievable: The missing dog Pablo walked 380 kilometers home ( BW24 * reported).
Picasso is trained to be a therapy dog to help people with disabilities
With her organization, the 53-year-old has already saved hundreds of disabled animals. Six employees and numerous volunteers support Liesl Willhardt. In addition to numerous dogs and cats, pigs also live on the property. Most of the dogs, including Picasso, come to her from overcrowded animal shelters in California. There is also a special rescue station in Backnang (Baden-Württemberg*). In the “Villa Anima eV” animal hospice, old cats can embark on their final journey*.
Newt and Picasso stand out among all of Liesl Willhardt’s animals. “I love Picasso and Newt with all my heart, they are both incredibly loving, happy, intelligent and funny dogs.” That’s why Picasso also receives special training: “We are now working on officially training him as a rescue dog. He works with people who are ill or need help,” says Liesl Willhardt. A dog is currently being trained by the police in Ludwigsburg*. Puppy Watson is said to later go on a criminal hunt*.
She hopes that Picasso will conquer many more hearts. Most people react cautiously when they meet him or Newt for the first time. “Most people immediately look around and then stare at the dogs for a while to make sense of what they’re seeing,” says her owner. But it doesn’t take long before the two four-legged friends have each one wrapped around their paws. “Both Picasso and Newt love people, so they are very outgoing in public, seek attention and love to greet people.” *BW24 is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA.
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