TwitterHere is yet another reason to love your Olympic boyfriend, Gus Kenworthy: The silver medal-winning skier is staying in Sochi longer than planned to make sure that the family of dogs he rescued are able to come home with him.
This is just one of three stories today of humans helping out their four-legged friends:
1. The Story of Gus Kenworthy and His Sochi Puppies
Hungry little guys :) pic.twitter.com/ejiu3IAKJW
? Gus Kenworthy (@guskenworthy) February 15, 2014"I just felt for all the animals. I heard that they were rounding them up and exterminating them and trying to keep them out of the public view, so I felt really bad," 22-year-old Gus told CNN of the litter of pups he found near the media center of the Rosa Khutor Extreme Park in Sochi.
He continued, "I definitely wasn't planning on trying to come here and be some animal activist or spokesperson for humanity or the dogs or anything. This particular family just touched me and I just think they're so cute and need some help."
Gus was supposed to fly back to Colorado on Monday, but according to CBS News, he "had to push back his plans so the dogs can join him for the long trip halfway across the world." U.S. skiing officials say he's "getting the paperwork done" and that it's "taking some time."
In the meantime, he's already begun brainstorming names: Like Sochi. And Silver.
2. The Story of Ali Fedotowsky and Her Trip to the Shelter
"Leading up to the 2014 Sochi Olympics, Russian authorities hired exterminators to shoot and poison dogs to clear the town of its large population of strays," animal activist Vlada Provotorova explains on the IndieGoGo campaign to raise funds for her animal shelter. "To date between 5,000-7,000 dogs have been killed."
E!'s very own Ali Fedotowsky was on her way to interview Vlada about the shelter when a dog approached her in the parking lot. "We saw a stray dog who looked so friendly and loving but was very skinny," Ali explains. "I called the dog to me and she came over almost as if she knew what I was saying or knew I had food in the car."
Ali pulled out some food the team was donating to the shelter and fed the pup. "My heart was melting. She didn't want to leave my side after that," she says. "When [Vlada] arrived, I had my translator ask her if we could bring the dog to the shelter. She agreed to take her after checking her out for a moment."
"It was so obvious to me that she just wanted someone to trust and someone to love her," Ali told us. "At the very end of the shoot, we were all waking out and I ran back into the shelter to say goodbye to her. As I went up to the gate, I put my hand on the fence and she put her paw on my hand and whimpered. Its almost as if she was thanking me for bringing her there."
"It was the most incredible, touching moment. I felt so incredibly grateful to have been able to help this one dog. But there are so many other dogs that need our help. I see dozens every day when I walk to work in the morning. Mothers that have JUST given birth. Smalls dogs. Bigs dogs. Even puppies. So many puppies. If everyone back home in the U.S. could see what I see here, everyone would want to help. So please, I'm begging you, donate. Help. These dogs need us."
Donate to Vlada's shelter through her IndieGoGo campaign or through PayPal (here).
3. The Story of the Craigslist Ad That Made Love Go Viral
Heroics aren't just happening abroad, though: In a now-viral Craiglist listing titled "3 yrs ago you were evicted from 20 Catherine St 13B. I have your dog," an anonymous writer tells the story of a pit bull who was left behind when her owner was evicted from their New York apartment.
The writer explains that the pit bull was "really skinny and had bad skin infections" and "had a lopsided face and it looked like there were a few cigarette burns on her head/ears." The dog was brought to a kill shelter.
The ad reads:
Although it's unlikely you'll ever see this note, I just wanted you to know that I have your dog and she is doing great. The AC named her Cathy, for Catherine Street...I like old dogs and I loved Cathy's little lopsided face. A rescue pulled her [from the kill shelter] for me and sent her north.
She gained weight and recovered from her skin issues. Her coat shines now and you can't see the little round cigarette burn marks any more...She has been wonderful with my young daughter, and our other two dogs. And it turns out she loves to swim! She loves fetch too. If she really was 12 back in 2011, that would make her 15 now but I doubt that as she still will go on long hikes with me, and swim and retrieve balls from the bay until she can barely stand... even though, yes, her face is turning white. She is truly an ambassador for her breed, even people who don't like pits will stop and pat her as she happily wags her tail.
"She is sleeping next to me as I type this, grunting with joy," the writer continues. "In fact, she sleeps on my bed every night. Your dog is an awesome dog. We love her so much. The past three years we've had with her have brought us (and her) so much happiness."
The writer says she's only posting because she wants to know how old Cathy really is and what she was originally named. Because, as the writer notes at the end: "P.S. you can't have her back."