A recovered drug addict has shared his inspiring story of how he was able to beat drugs and turn his life around after adopting a puppy.
Mike Favor, a 40-year-old New York carpenter and son of a police officer, had been an active cocaine user for 13 years and was fighting to get sober when he met an eight-week-old German shepherd with a heart condition in 2016.
The rescue organization, where Favor occasionally volunteered, told him that the puppy had only four months to live due to his condition.
After much reluctance, Favor took the dog in, named him Honey and said, “I’ll give her the best four months possible.”
Little did he know, adopting Honey would be the start of his nearly decade-long sobriety journey and encourage him to start a shelter for abandoned dogs.
Mike Favor, a 40-year-old carpenter and son of a police officer, had been an active cocaine user for 13 years and was trying to get sober when he met an eight-week-old German shepherd with a heart condition in 2016
After much reluctance, Favor took the dog in, named him Honey and said, “I’ll give her the best four months possible.”
Freedom Home, a 4,000-square-foot shelter, is home to tons of abused or neglected dogs abandoned by owners or found on the streets.
Favor also has a program called Pitbulls and Addicts that connects recovering addicts with the breed.
As the recovered carpenter explains, the program “brings together two misunderstood races in need of care and acceptance.”
In addition, Favor also runs Broken Souls Rescue and Recovery, one of more than 300 nonprofit rescue groups in New York that takes in stray or abused dogs, either from city shelters or off the streets, and facilitates adoptions.
Freedom Home, a 4,000-square-foot shelter houses tons of abused or neglected dogs abandoned by their owners or found on the streets
Favor also has a program called Pitbulls and Addicts that connects recovering addicts with Pitbulls
As the recovered carpenter explains, the program “brings together two misunderstood races in need of care and acceptance.”
‘I wanted to show people what works for me. This dog lifestyle made me want to go from dealing with drugs to dealing with broken souls, because I was a broken soul. These animals gave me a purpose to live.
‘That dog accepted me as I was at the lowest point in my life. As an addict, we back ourselves into a corner and defend ourselves.
‘I opened my heart and welcomed her. And with that, she welcomed me to find the man inside. “I was still a broken boy trying to reach that man,” the seven-year-old drug-free man told the newspaper New York Times.
Talking about his current condition, he said, “This is seven years. I finally feel like I’m doing okay. I haven’t felt like this in my entire life. Like I finally have a reason to live.’
According to Favor, he prefers to focus on pit bulls because they are “the most difficult to place, stigmatized as aggressive and dangerous.”
But starting the shelters was not as easy as it seems.
According to Favor, he prefers to focus on pit bulls because they are “the most difficult to place, stigmatized as aggressive and dangerous.”
When asked what he thinks is the usual problem with such dogs or with the world, he usually answers “people.”
‘I have been robbed. I let people sleep on couches. I put people in hotel rooms. I took guys under my wing for many, many, many months,” he explained.
Favor also suspects that someone deliberately started a fire in 2019, which burned down a large part of the shelter.
When asked what he thinks is the usual problem with such dogs or with the world, he usually answers “people.”
‘It’s the people. Soft America is not for me.’
Although Honey survived her condition for seven years and succumbed last year, Favor is not deterred from his goal and says there is still more work to be done.
“When you walk past a homeless dog on the street, you stop and want to help,” he said. You walk past a drug addict and step over him. We have to do better.’