Detroit, Michigan, - A dog shelter will soon be offering a
fairly unusual pet for adoption: a hermaphrodite dog, which the shelter’s director hopes might provide therapy for transgender
residents.
“In my experience I’ve never seen it before,” said Kristina
Rinaldi, the executive director of the shelter, Detroit Dog Rescue.
The dog is a silvery-gray pit bull mix named Cody, who
arrived at the Detroit-based rescue shelter Tuesday. The dog was listed as a
male, but upon inspection Cody turned out to have both sex organs.
Cody also arrived from the city’s animal control facility
with a serious case of pneumonia, and was soon moved to an animal hospital for
treatment.
The name “Cody” was already assigned to the dog upon
arrival. Rinaldi has asked Detroit Animal Control to ask about the dog’s
history but hasn’t heard back yet.
Cody is not yet available for adoption, and will have to
pass a behavioral test to see whether more training is needed before finding an
owner.
And while the dog has both sex organs for now, the adoption
process usually involves spaying or neutering a pet beforehand. In Cody’s case
both may happen, but Rinaldi said that staff is checking with specialists at
Michigan State University to seek further advice.
According to WWJ-TV in Detroit, Rinaldi didn't know of any
statistics involving the incidences of hermaphrodite dogs.
The TV station said another case of a hermaphrodite dog was
reported in 2013. A Florida woman paid $1,000 for a cockapoo. After buying the
dog, she learned that it had both male and female genitalia.
Prior to spaying or neutering, Rinaldi said she would be
willing to use Cody at events or in speeches for transgender residents in the
hope that the dog could provide any kind of support.
“Cody is still going to live ... life out like a completely normal dog,”
Rinaldi said. “Cody’s going to be a great pet for somebody.”
