Sao Paulo Dog Names

What makes this a noble cause, however, isn't the fact that these dogs get to fetch all the balls they could ever want. It's the fact that these dogs were all collected from local shelters. Yes, these dogs are amazing, but they've been abandoned by their owners for one reason or another. Often times, poor families will no longer be able to afford keeping a pet, so they just let them roam free in the streets until they're collected and taken to a shelter. It happens to dogs, cats, birds, even reptiles.

In other instances, the owners will die, and the pets will have nowhere to go. There's been a rise in these cases in Brazil, with homeless men and women dying as a result of hate crimes. The dogs will often wait in vain for their owners to return, until they are forced to roam the streets alone. But someone had the brilliant idea to essentially hire these dogs from the shelters, and showcase them during the tennis tournament. Each year, these dogs are given the treat and joy of leaving the shelter, and chasing balls around a court.

And if any onlookers see one of the dogs and decide they want to adopt, they certainly can. Back in 2016, four of the 12 dogs featured were adopted. It's unfortunate that all 12 couldn't have been adopted, but alas, the circumstances vary by country. Again, Brazil has some economic issues, as do many other countries in the world right now, so not everyone can adopt a pet safely and comfortably. Still, these canines got to run around the court, chase balls around, and prove that no matter what they've gone through, they are will great companions today and in the future, as explained by Madalena Spinazzola, the pet-food maker representative for Premier Pet, organizing the initiative with the tournament.

Last time these dogs were covered by the press was March 2017. It is still unknown whether they've been adopted since then, but here's to hoping!