Malnourished, and suffering from a respiratory infection and chronic skin disease, Christopher was in bad shape.

That’s what happens when “life” is spent inside a pen. Christopher and Happy—whose name hardly reflected his reality—had been locked away 24/7 for years, their view completely obscured by tarps and blankets that provided them with little protection from harsh weather.

PETA’s Community Animal Project (CAP) had been visiting the dogs since 2015 and happened to be there the day their owners were packing up and moving. After finally getting custody of the dogs, CAP transferred them to the Virginia Beach SPCA. Happy found a new home right away, but Christopher couldn’t be adopted until he was healthy.

Thankfully, he healed in no time. Two weeks after arriving at the SPCA, he was in a foster home, and two weeks after that, he was at Poochella, the annual adopt-a-thon that PETA puts on with area shelters and rescue organizations at its Bea Arthur Dog Park in Norfolk, Virginia.

Christopher’s luck was about to get even better.

Alysoun, a longtime PETA friend and supporter, was in town and was moved by Christopher’s story. She also knew that it wasn’t unusual: Itchy, who’d also been rescued by CAP, had been locked away in a garbage-strewn pen and was suffering from advanced heartworm disease. He spent the last four years of his life at the Northern Virginia home of Alysoun and her late husband, Greg, living as all dogs should—happy and loved.

Today, Christopher is enjoying the good life. He not only has the run of the place but also has a couple of horses for friends, including Charlie, the racehorse Alysoun adopted after Greg died, and he goes on walks with a neighbor dog.

Don’t you just love happy endings? You can ensure that other dogs have them, too, by adopting one when you’re ready to open your home and heart and by supporting PETA’s vital work for animals.