3-legged Mishawaka pup competing for title of ‘World’s Cutest Rescue Dog’

MISHAWAKA, Ind. (WNDU) - A local, down-on-his-luck pup is poised for stardom in People magazine.

Ducky, a downright lovable rescue dog, is already in the magazine and his profile is rising.

Here’s what you need to know about Ducky: the dog can smile. It’s a smile that when you look at him will make you smile, too. And the more you smile at Ducky, the more he smiles back — it just keeps escalating.

And it turns out People magazine thinks he just might be the cutest rescue dog in the world.

When Ducky ended up at a Kentucky shelter, he had a badly injured leg slathered in Vaseline and wrapped tightly in duct tape. So, that’s where the name “Ducky” comes from.

Loni Oehlwein became Ducky’s foster mom after he got to Indiana.

“He had surgery pretty quickly afterwards and he just kind of fit right in,” she said. “He’s really sweet and he had to rest a lot. I kind of took him to work with me a little bit.”

Five and a half years ago on Valentine’s Day, Maria Waltersdorf adopted Ducky, offering the hard luck pup a forever home.

Ducky’s damaged limb was removed by veterinary surgeons just last week. Nonetheless, Waltersdorf is on a mission to make her star-crossed canine a celebrity. He’s now entered in People magazine’s “World’s Cutest Rescue Dog” competition.

“I am a crazy dog mom, and anytime I have a chance to tell his story, I do,” Waltersdorf said. “And I had just seen on Facebook: enter your dog to be in People magazine’s ‘World Cutest Rescue Dog.’”

7,499 other crazy dog moms and dog dads did the same thing. Waltersdorf, though, is undaunted by the competition.

“Look at his face. I think he’s the world’s cutest rescue dog,” she said. “I think a lot of people do.”

Seems like it, because Ducky vanquished all but nine of his competitors. He’s in the top ten, and his picture is within the pages of People magazine.

And now, we all have the chance to tilt the scales in Ducky’s direction. Waltersdorf created a distinct duck link online.

“So, we made it super simple. Just go to voteforduck.com,” she said. “That’ll bring you right to PEOPLE’S website. All you have to do is click his adorable face and then click submit. And that’s that. You don’t have to put your email in or anything.”

Once again, you can place your vote for Ducky by clicking here!

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