Dave Bautista Adopts Hurt Puppy & Offers Reward To Find The Person Who Hurt Her

Penny the dog may have had a very rough start in life, but it seems that she had fate on her side in the form of a Hollywood actor with a heart for dogs in need. Dave Bautista is a man of many talents, from WWE fame all the way to Guardians of the Galaxy superstardom, he's adored by fans across the globe. But now he's using his fame to find the coward who hurt and abandoned his new best fur friend.

Originally named Sage, the cute female puppy was taken in by the good folks at the Humane Society of Tampa Bay—and not a moment too soon. In their original post from September 16th which went viral, they shared little Sage's plight with their followers:

"Happening Now Sage was just brought to us with a metal chain embedded... hanging from her neck. We are currently prepping her for surgery to remove the chain.

A Good Samaritan was driving on the way home, and saw Sage eating garbage at "The Home Cemetery". She stopped and Sage immediately ran up to her. She put Sage in the car and rushed over to HSTB.

Sage is only 3-months-old. She is very sweet and friendly. Even though she is in immense pain Sage was wagging her tail on the exam table while our veterinarian and vet techs were examining her. In addition to the chain, we noticed that Sage has skin issues and overgrown nails. We can't imagine who would do this to her. Please send well wishes to Sage as she undergoes her surgery. We will keep you updated on Sage after her surgery is complete.

(Warning: we chose not to display the graphic image with the chain embed, but you can view it should you wish by clicking here.)

It didn't take long for Sage's story to make the rounds on social media, and when Dave Bautista learned of her heartbreaking tale, he knew he had to step up in a big way to show her that not all humans are bad. So, if you didn't already love this cool dude, now you definitely do!

When Dave made it over to meet Sage, it was clearly love at first sight...

And as if giving newly-named Penny a forever home wasn't enough, Dave isn't stopping there. He's offering a $5,000 reward to catch the cold-blooded criminal who hurt this sweet pup. Dave took to his Instagram account to share Penny's story, and he let his 3.6 million followers know that justice will be served to the sick person who did this to his dog. Dave stated that:

ATTN Tampa Bay: I will personally hand $5000 cash to the person who gives information leading to the arrest and conviction of the sick piece of shit responsible for this. In addition, @humanesocietytampabay is also offering $1500. If you know anything please contact @humanesocietytampabay or @safek9

Needless to say, support grew quickly to catch the evil person who abused Penny and literally left her for dead. From the average Instagram user to Jason Momoa and even Mickey Rourke, millions of people learned about Penny and the reward offered on her behalf. And this isn't the first time that dog-lover Dave has rescued an abused dog either. Penny will have two Pit Bull playmates at home to spend her days with, and one thing is certain, she'll never have to suffer at the hands of a human again. Hats off to Dave for using his fame for the greater good of our four-legged friends. He's a hero with a big heart in our book!

All Images of Sage/Penny Courtesy of Humane Society of Tampa Bay

When Dave made it over to meet Sage, it was clearly love at first sight...

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