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Leo, a one-and-a-half-year-old cocker spaniel, is a good dog, but he can be a lazy one too.
“Leo is very lazy,” says his owner, Elsie Garcia, with a laugh. “When I first got him, I was a little concerned because I did my research and, as a cocker spaniel, he’s supposed to be a little bit wild. But no, he was the calmest dog.
“He will play with you and loves attention, but he loves to sleep too,” continues Garcia, who is training him as a therapy dog. If you sit down, he will want to lay right on top of you and be petted the entire time.”
“He was kind of a goofball,” recalls Lindsay Weisman, founder of Pittsford’s Cleft Rescue Unit and Leo’s rescuer. “When he first got here, he would just lounge on this baby chair.”
Due to his relaxed and loving personality, Leo has been so well-suited for the task that he is a semi-finalist in the “Emerging Hero and Shelter Dog” category of the American Humane Society’s 15th Annual Hero Dog Awards. The nationwide award recognizes dogs who have done heroic deeds, overcome difficult odds, or have remarkable rescue stories.
Leo was born with a cleft lip, which, along with cleft palates, is a facial difference that occurs in about one out of 25 puppies, Weisman says. The condition makes it more difficult for young puppies to eat and drink and can require incubators or oxygen concentrators, tube feeding, extra training to eat, or surgery in some cases, but in no way takes away from their ability to have full happy lives, she adds.
“Very often, if people don’t know about rescues, they will unfortunately turn to euthanasia,” says Weisman. “Typically, the dogs we get are brachycephalic breeds, meaning they have short noses. Those are the dogs that already need to have c-sections, so they’re already in the vet when they’re born with the palate, and we’re able to get the call.”
The Cleft Rescue Unit began in 2023 and employs about six other people, with partners in fostering and rescue drivers. To date they have cared for around 250 puppies, primarily with cleft and facial differences. The unit’s work has received national attention.
Besides rescuing puppies, a key part of the Cleft Rescue Unit’s work has been attending cleft-positive events across the country, such as Cleft Con in Orlando, Fla., with their dogs. The organization accepts rescues from as far away as Ohio and has adopted out all over the country, including to Garcia, who lives in northern Florida.
Garcia’s son, who has a craniofacial difference, had a positive experience growing up with a dog that was facially different. The comfort and encouragement from a pet that looked similar to him made a positive impact on his life. That experience, Garcia believes, should be passed on to other people with facial differences as well.
“It made a world of difference for his self-esteem and having that companionship and unconditional love that dogs give us,” she says.
That experience inspired Garcia to look for a dog like Leo to aid her work at the Cleft and Craniofacial Program at the Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital in Hollywood, Fla. Leo, who will work there as a therapy dog, has already attended events such as picnics Garcia holds for patients and their families.
“The children as well as the parents are always in awe because most of them did not even know that dogs could be born with cleft lips,” she says.
Having a comforting pet can be important to support those patients, Garcia says, reflecting on her own experience as a parent.
“Many times they have to talk about surgeries or getting scans, and that can be really scary for children, because, with a cleft lip and palate, it’s not one and done, there are a lot of procedures and checkups,” she says. “It’s overwhelming for the parents too. I mean, I went through it with my son, and I wish there was a therapy dog like Leo. It would have made a huge difference.”
“We’ve seen kids who have been 10 years old and had 30 surgeries,” says Weisman. “That’s the kind of things these kids are going through, these very extensive and very painful journeys. So, just knowing that we can bring a bright spot to them, that is what makes it all worth it for me.”
If Leo wins the contest vote, Garcia and Weisman both hope that he can serve as an ambassador and help spread awareness about rescue animals and facial differences.
“It would be amazing, because by celebrating him, we’re showing all these children that being different is not a bad thing. It’s a thing to be celebrated,” Garcia says.
Voting for 15th Annual Hero Dog Awards can be done through the American Humane Society’s website with the latest round ending Sept. 15.
Jacob Schermerhorn is a Rochester Beacon contributing writer and data journalist.
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