Once gravely injured, a one-of-a-kind dog brings joy to Central Mass. brewery

EAST BROOKFIELD — When Matthew Zarif adopted Nugget, the 1-year-old three-legged poodle, he didn’t just meet the newest member of his family, but his “dog soulmate.”

“It was like love at first sight,” Zarif, the owner of Timberyard Brewing Co. in East Brookfield, said. “He's with me 24/7. He's my dog, I’m his person, and he's just the perfect dog that I was looking for.”

Nugget’s journey to the Zarif family wasn’t the easiest. The dog previously had a severe leg injury that caused excruciating pain.

Nugget, formerly known as Natty, landed in the care of Second Chance Animal Services, where veterinarians did everything they could to save his leg. But it was ultimately decided that amputating the leg would best ensure Nugget had a quality life and comfort.

About 48 hours after the surgery, Nugget was moving around a bit. And two weeks after that, Nugget was able to move around without the use of support, said Lindsay Doray, the chief development officer at Second Chance.

And since then, Nugget has been able to keep up and in some cases run faster than some dogs with four legs — even without the support of a prosthesis.

“That dog is lightning-fast … He gets around so well. You would not know that he only had three legs,” Doray said. “He very, very quickly adapted to the loss of a limb and he is a very, very happy, very, very smart dog.”

Despite the traumatic experience, Nugget is a very happy dog with a “wonderful personality,” Doray said.

One of Nugget's favorite games, Zarif said, is to get other dogs to run and chase him.

"From day one, he hit the ground running, quite literally," he said. "We got him just a couple of weeks out of surgery, still had staples in him. And the resilience and the agility and speed of this dog is unreal."

Affinity for animals with limb loss

Zarif and his wife, Nellie, aren’t exactly rookies when it comes to raising three-legged poodles, having already brought a goldendoodle named Lucy into their family about five years ago.

“My wife watched the movie ‘Homeward Bound’ and said we needed a dog,” he said. “I happened to be searching and found Lucy, who was a three-legged goldendoodle.”

Because of Nellie’s work in prosthetics at the Hanger Clinic, she has an affinity for people and animals with limb loss, Zarif said. And the two quickly bonded, with Lucy often becoming a work companion for Nellie, helping inspire people with her own prosthesis made by Nellie.

When it came to Nugget, the roles were reversed, with Nellie discovering Nugget on Second Chance’s social media pages.

The couple have had a long-standing relationship with the nonprofit, both personally and professionally.

In addition to Nugget, Zarif and his wife adopted two kittens from Second Chance who were Nugget’s best friends while at the rescue. They also take all of their pets there for veterinary services.

In Timberyard, which serves as a food and drink establishment and a community space, Second Chance is a longtime partner.

The brewery and the nonprofit partner on activities such as puppy yoga. Timberyard also helps with fundraisers for Second Chance, and occasionally provides storage space when, for example, the nonprofit receives an “absurd amount” of donated dog beds, Zarif said.

So when Nellie approached Matthew Zarif about adopting another three-legged member into their family, it didn’t take long for him to feel a connection.

Since then, Nugget has become more than a family member.

'He's something special'

Like Lucy with Nellie, Nugget often accompanies Matthew Zarif to work, where the dog knows which areas he can and cannot enter. (Aside from some special occasions, like puppy yoga, dogs aren’t allowed in the taproom, only in outdoor spaces.)

“Nugget is allowed in the production area,” which has a deck connected to the taproom, overlooking the production area, Zarif said. “We got him on a Wednesday and I told him that he wasn't allowed in the taproom, maybe two times … and that Saturday was puppy yoga, and I said, ‘Well, here's a test.’“

At the monthly puppy yoga classes, dogs that are available for adoption at Second Chance get to run around the brewery while attendees practice yoga.

Zarif said that when he walked into the taproom at the yoga class, there were about 50 people and three puppies running around. Nugget ran up to the door excitedly, he said, but stopped right at the line where he was told not to cross.

“He waited for the puppies to come home to him,” Zarif said. “So he’s something special.”

Nugget’s friendliness and intelligence left Zarif's “mind blown” and also left an impression on employees and customers.

“He's increased the happiness of our whole staff here, everyone, as well as the customers,” he said. “We get people who come just to visit Nugget.”

Since joining his family, Nugget has become a local celebrity and staple of the Timberyard Brewing experience, even getting a day dedicated to him on the establishment’s social media: #nuggetmonday.

His presence has inspired one of Zarif’s employees to write a children’s book about Nugget, he said.

And with the last couple of months being particularly stressful because of staff turnover and Zarif needing to put in “crazy hours” at the brewery, having Nugget with him helps keep him “grounded.”

“He’s super friendly,” Zarif said. “He greets everyone here and everyone who meets him realizes what a special dog he is.”

Outside of the business, Nugget has helped energize Lucy as well, giving her a playmate, Zarif said. Because she is older she didn’t play as much as when they first got her. But since getting Nugget, Lucy will sometimes instigate him into playing.

For the 13 years that Doray has worked at Second Chance, she has seen a lot of pets come through the nonprofit’s doors, and many have left an impression on her.

But Nugget’s personality, as well as his celebrity status in the community, have stood out to her, she said.

“My kids love to look for him,” she said. “I don't think I've been there since they adopted him and not seen him.”

A way to help pets with medical needs

Second Chance provides, among other things, veterinary care, programs and resources to help low-income pet owners, and adoption services.

She said the organization prides itself on taking in “medically needy pets,” especially right now as they are “often overlooked.” Last year, the organization helped over 44,000 animals and is on track to help over 48,000 this year.

“Seeing what the economy has done to people, high inflation, the high housing costs, et cetera, it means more and more people are coming to us in need of services,” she said. “We want to be there to be able to say ‘yes’ when there's a Nugget that needs help.”

When it came to Nugget’s medical expenses, Second Chance began fundraising to help cover the costs and recovery.

Doray said she hopes people will be inspired by Nugget’s story, as well as the holiday spirit, and make a donation to help with other pets, as well as pet owners, who may be also going through a difficult journey.

The only way to do that, she said, is through the support of the community.

“We need to be able to operate and be able to have the funds available to perform these surgeries to save the dog's life,’ Doray said. “Give them that second chance.”

If another three-legged animal pops up, his wife would probably be immediately interested, Zarif said. But for now, they’re content with the fur family they’ve formed so far.

“We're just so grateful that Second Chance was there to rescue this puppy because he wouldn't have made it otherwise,” Zarif said. “My kids and family just adore him. He’s just amazing.”

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Three-legged poodle Nugget adopted by Timberyard Brewing owners