Lundy, an 8-week-old Chihuahua who can’t walk, and his pal Herman, a pigeon who can’t fly, have been snuggling together at the Mia Foundation, a nonprofit shelter catering to animals with special needs and birth defects in upstate Hilton.
“This guy here has touched the hearts of millions of people,” the shelter’s Gary Rogers told NBC affiliate WHEC.
Pictures of the duo on Facebook have prompted hundreds of messages and donations from around the world.
“I see a new friendship blooming,” Sue Rogers wrote in the post, which has garnered more than 6 million views and has been shared more than 43,000 times.
“Unbelievable that a simple, cute picture would go this crazy,” she told WHEC.
Herman, who has been living at the shelter for over a year, was likely left flightless due to the West Nile virus or a brain injury, while Lundy arrived six weeks ago from North Carolina unable to use his hind legs.
“I took Herman out of his playpen to give him some time out and I put him in a dog bed and then I had to tend to Lundy so I put Lundy in with him,” Rogers told the news outlet.
“They just looked really cute together so I took some pictures and posted them to Facebook and the next morning it was crazy,” she said.
Rogers added: “Just from a simple picture of a pigeon and a puppy being shared, we’ve already brought in over $6,000 in donations.”