Deaf and Blind Puppy Became a Role Model to Kids

A tiny pink two-year-old Dachshund Chihuahua mix named Piglet is inspiring many children to stay positive and to overcome obstacles.

Piglet was born in a litter of 37 pups, with a birth defect that resulted in hearing and vision loss. Luckily, veterinarian Melissa Shapiro adopted the puppy and gave him everything he needed to improve his health. Taking care of a disabled puppy was not an easy task, as Melissa had a full-time job and 6 other dogs in her house.

“He was so anxious, he was screaming constantly. He would play, then go to sleep, but when he wasn’t doing either of those, he was screaming. I couldn’t leave the house the first month I had the dog here,” Shapiro said.

View this post on Instagram

Thank you to Greta Bjornson and People.com for publishing a beautiful article about Piglet this afternoon. We want to welcome many new friends who found Piglet via that article. I’ve received many questions about Piglet so here is a brief summary of Piglet, the deaf blind pink puppy. Scroll to see a few adorable pictures of Piggy and his pack. Piglet is a double dapple doxie chihuahua mix. He was born in a hoarding situation. When two dapple color patterned dogs breed there is a 25% chance each puppy will receive two dapple genes. This is called “double dapple” or double merle which is linked to congenital ear and eye defects. Piglet is deaf and blind. Piglet faces his challenges with a positive attitude. This is called a Piglet Mindset. He is an exceptional growth mindset model for children and adults. Our Piglet Mindset Educational Outreach Program is available on Piglet’s website for classroom use (free downloads). We are happy to support teachers who introduce Piglet to their students. We correspond via mail and email, send Piglet Merchandise, and visit when possible. Piglet is an animal welfare advocate. He encourages spay and neuter, educates about the severe consequences of double dapple breeding, and he encourages adoption of special needs pets. Our fundraising efforts have exceeded $30,000 which has all been donated to special needs dog rescues and other nonprofit organizations. Most of all, Piglet is an adorable, happy, entertaining tiny pink dog with a very positive attitude. He puts a smile on faces all around the world. Visit pinkpigletpuppy.org to learn more. And email with questions and inquiries. [email protected]. Keep an eye on Piggy’s stories this weekend as he will be in Columbus, Ohio participating in the Special K9 Games!! . . . #pinkpigletpuppy #deafdogsofinstagram #blinddogsofinstagram #rescuedogsofinstagram #doubledapple #animaladvocate #aspca #humanesociety #petinsider #tdafam #buzzfeedanimals

A post shared by Piglet, deaf blind pink puppy (@pinkpigletpuppy) on

Months of hard work and constant care paid off and Piglet’s health improved dramatically. Today, he has more than 145 thousand followers on Instagram and his story went viral, inspiring people around the world.

A third-grade teacher from Plainville, Massachusetts heard about Piglet and used his story to teach children about having a positive mindset and Piglet inspired them never to give up. Piglet is now their role model and every time they face a problem, the children ask themselves “What would Piglet do?” They call this a “Piglet State of Mind.”

Check out this adorable dog in the photos below.