The Story of Starr and Owen

Owen was originally found wandering down a busy main road in an area of Atlanta known for dogfighting. He was emaciated and had several bite wounds. He was frightened, but he quickly recognized that the people who came toward him on the street were there to help. Owen just melted into the arms of his rescuers from Atlanta Animal Rescue Friends (AARF) right there on the sidewalk. After a vet checkup, the AARF rescuers realized that Owen had likely been used as a bait dog, and was lucky enough to get away from his torturers.
Owen moved to a foster home with Starr Turner, AARF's foster director at the time. She had fostered many dogs throughout her time with AARF, but Owen was different, and held a special place in her heart. While Starr was on vacation and Owen was staying at a local boarding facility, he became very depressed and sick. When Starr returned home to her precious boy, she realized she could never let him go again.

"Owen is a super amazing dog," Starr says. "I'm in law school right now and having him around keeps me sane." Starr loves his adorable ways, like theway he curls up on his little brown mat next to her desk when she's working, and the way he lets her know he needs to go out by making a noise that sounds like Chewbacca from Star Wars. "It's too cute!" she says. Owen loves car trips so much that Starr feels bad whenever she needs to get something out of the car, because he always hops right in, expecting to go for a fun ride. "He's a great dog, and I'm so happy I adopted him!" Starr says.

Starr's experience with Owen even helped inspire her to write a law review article about the misinformation and false facts that surround pit bull breeds.