Dog Rescued From Cage Thrown Into River Finds New Home: 'He Still Loves People'

A young Michigan dog with a resilient spirit has found a new home after being rescued from a perilous situation.

VanBuren, a puppy estimated to be 5 to 6 months old, was picked up by animal control after someone found him “locked in a black wire crate in a river,” Jackson County Animal Shelter spokesperson Lydia Sattler told HuffPost in an email.

VanBuren was taken to the shelter, which wrote about his plight last week in a Facebook post that went viral. The shelter noted that “thankfully” someone spotted the cage in the river “before the rains came,” when the water wasn’t too high.

The post included a photo showing VanBuren’s leg healing from a “nasty break” that he had when he was found. He also had “several abrasions,” Sattler added.

But the trauma he’d been through apparently didn’t dampen the puppy’s loving spirit.

“He is absolutely a wiggle bottom and full of kisses for everyone,” Sattler said.

The shelter’s post also noted that VanBuren “still loves people” and aspires to be the “best doggo ever.”

His sweet attitude is likely a big reason it didn’t take long for him to find a home. On Monday, Sattler said VanBuren had been adopted and shared a happy photo of the pup with his new family.

Congrats, VanBuren!