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(CNN) - Meet Herman and Lundy, friends recently and rescue animals.
They are an unlikely couple: Herman, a dove, suffered neurological damage more than a year ago. He can not fly. Little Lundy, a newborn Chihuahua puppy, cannot use its hind legs.
But if they join them, the two curl up as if they were members of the same litter ... or nest.
The two met through the Mia Foundation, a rescue organization in Rochester, New York, which rehabilitates animals with birth defects and physical deformities. Sue Rogers, the founder of the nonprofit organization, sends most of her rescued animals to foster homes across the United States, but stays with some of them for school bullying programs.
Their friendship between species has inspired dozens of supporters to donate to the foundation. And animals, Rogers said, improve each other.
- Meet Narwhal, the rescued puppy that has a tail on his forehead and is now called "unicorn"
Two difficult beginnings
Herman was found more than a year ago in a car dealership parking lot, where he was on the sidewalk, motionless, for three full days. Finally, his rescuers realized that the poor dove could not fly.
Neighboring wildlife rescuers said he could not be rehabilitated and would need to be sacrificed, so Rogers took care of herself.
Now he rests in a crib for part of the day, but she takes him outside every day to stimulate him.
Little Lundy, a newborn chihuahua, has just arrived. His breeders in South Carolina sent him to Rogers because he had trouble using his hind legs, a condition known as swimmers syndrome.
With only 6 ounces, it was small enough to fit in a shirt pocket. Rogers said he suspects Lundy's difficulty in walking is due to damage to his small spinal cord.
When Lundy met Herman
The two were bound to meet eventually. Rogers joined them while attending to Lundy and saw the way the two crouched almost immediately: Herman did not peck and Lundy did not nibble.
Rogers took some pictures of his hugs. The "oohs" and "ahhs" followed shortly after.
People from all corners of the world flooded Rogers' inbox with donations, messages of support and, naturally, pleas to adopt Lundy or the other cute puppies in his care.
"I was impressed," he said.
And donations keep coming: the foundation raised $ 6,000 in two days, he said. That is enough to cover the high cost of veterinary surgery that many of your rescue animals require.
Lundy needs to strengthen herself to be adoptable
Herman is likely to remain in Rogers' care for the rest of his life. He hopes that Lundy will stay strong and survive.
"With animals born with defects, there is a possibility that we can lose them," he said. “So we don't want to excite anyone. But now I think we have received thousands of emails asking, "Please, never separate those two!"
One of Lundy's rescuers fell in love with him while traveling with him to Rochester, so he may already have a new house on the way. The question, then, is whether Herman will ask to go too.
Pigeons