Celia is a dog with a beautiful, resilient spirit. After being tossed from a balcony, she suffered a broken leg, and subsequently lost the limb. But despite experiencing these traumatic events, she’s happy and playful as ever — and has finally found a loving home.

“A 5-year-old girl threw Celia from a two-story balcony to her sister, who was standing below — but she missed, and Celia landed on the ground and broke her leg,” PETA Associate Director of the Community Animal Project Emily Allen told Lady Freethinker.

After the incident, the family Celia was living with deemed her “ugly,” did not want her anymore, and could not afford veterinary care.

Fortunately, the family called PETA, who took Celia to a clinic. There, she was X-rayed and the veterinarian determined that her leg needed to be amputated. So the vet removed Celia’s leg and took care of her while she recovered.

After surgery, PETA staff helped find Celia a new home and family that would love and appreciate her. And now, she’s her energetic self again.

Celia’s story is unfortunate but heartening. Thanks to her rescuers, Celia is currently healthy and in a new home, bringing light and joy to everyone around her.

But sadly, millions of dogs and cats will enter shelters in this year, and almost half will be put down because they are unable to find homes.

“To address this tragedy at its source, it’s essential for guardians to spay or neuter their animal companions in order to prevent the birth of more unwanted animals,” said Allen.

“We encourage those who are interested in saving dogs in their own communities — and who have the time, money, and resources to bring an animal into their home — to adopt from shelters and never buy from breeders or pet stores, which exacerbate the animal-homelessness crisis by continuing to bring a steady stream of dogs and cats into a world that already has no place for many of them to go.”