A basketball player who used to make headlines for his bad boy antics is now in the news for helping a dog in need.
In early July, a Memphis, Tenn., Pit Bull Terrier was rescued after he’d gotten himself stuck in a drainage pipe. Caitlin Rogers and her mother came across the trapped dog when they heard whimpering coming from the pipe. City public works crews responded and used a backhoe to remove the dirt from around the pipe, and crew members were able to shimmy in and retrieve the dog.
It is estimated that the pup spent at least two days down in the pipe. The Pittie was so frightened after his ordeal that his rescuers required catch poles to handle him.
Following the rescue, the dog was transported to the Memphis Animal Services Shelter, where he has been treated for heartworm and several skin infections.
When Memphis Grizzlies forward Zach Randolph heard about the dog’s plight, he stepped in, donating $10,000 of his own money to pay for the rehabilitation and adoption of the rescued Pit Bull Terrier.
“It’s remarkable that he’s still alive,” Randolph told The Memphis Commercial Appeal of the Pit Bull.
The dog has been named “Little Z-Bo” in honor of the six-foot-nine athlete.
Randolph was present at the Memphis Animal Services Shelter last Friday as the Pit Bull was transferred over to members of the Villalobos Rescue Center, a Pit Bull rehabilitation center out of New Orleans. The rescue group is the subject of the Animal Planet show Pit Bulls and Parolees.
“Everybody looks at Pit Bulls as bad things, but people don’t understand it’s a good dog and it’s like any other dog,” said Randolph. “It depends on how you treat them and raise them,” he added.
Before the Pittie set off for New Orleans and his new life at Villalobos, Randolph placed a blue and gray Grizzlies collar around the pup’s neck.
“He’ll have another life and have a chance to be with a family someday,” Randolph said.
The story of Little Z-Bo’s rescue will be featured on an upcoming episode of Pit Bulls and Parolees.
Sources: GlobalAnimal.org, NBC Sports Pro Basketball Talk, CommercialAppeal.com
