Pay de Limón, the dog mutilated by Los Zetas that could become America's favorite pet

Pay de Limón, at the Milagros Caninos dog shelter, south of Mexico City. ALFREDO ESTRELLA (AFP)

Pay de Limón was found in 2011 in a garbage dump in Fresnillo, Zacatecas, the municipality with the highest perception of insecurity in Mexico.

The Los Zetas cartel, one of the most violent in the country, had preyed on the dog, who was barely a year old at the time.

The toes of its front legs had been cut off one by one, which were finally amputated.

Twelve years after being rescued from horror by the owner of the sanctuary Milagros Caninos, the story of Pay de Limón has taken a remarkable turn.

Three days after the close of the

contest , he is positioned as the first of the finalists, the one preferred by the voters.

The founder of the sanctuary, Paty Milagros, compares the case of Pay de Limón with the kidnappings perpetrated by organized crime.

“They cut off her fingers one by one, like when they cut off human beings who are kidnapped,” she says in a telephone interview with EL PAÍS.

The dog now walks with prostheses that he renews every year, the first ones were made in Denver (Colorado), and later came those from Washington and Virginia.

Milagros says that the notice came to her from one of the components of the cartel.

“He contacted me and told me where he was [Pay de Limón].

That person liked dogs, ”he defends.

After picking it up, they transferred it to Xochimilco, in Mexico City, where the sanctuary dedicated to dogs that have suffered extreme violence is located.

During the first months of care, they kept him hidden for fear of possible reprisals from the drug trafficker, until they decided that he should continue with his normal life.

Contest organizers speak of Pay's case as "simple, brutal and poignant proof of the cruelty of drug cartels."

Violence in Mexico is a daily reality.

The country closed 2021 with 35,625 homicides, of which almost 5% (1,776) took place in Zacatecas,

With a photograph in which he appears with his ears tilted, his eyes closed and a pair of prostheses dressed in camouflage, the animal organization tried to gather support.

“She is already over 13 years old and we know that time is against her.

He is a hero, a survivor of human cruelty.

He is an example of unconditional love, resilience, and strength, ”they shared.

The founder of the sanctuary affirms that, with the more than 13 years that Pay de Limón has, he is “happy and healthy”.

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America's Favorite Pet

bills itself as the "world's largest online pet competition as of 2020."

If he got the most support, Pay de Limón would be able to appear on the cover of the dog magazine Dogster, in addition to winning $5,000 in cash (around 92,000 Mexican pesos).

With this award, he would succeed Willow, a collie who won the award in 2021.

Meanwhile, in the dog sanctuary of Xochimilco ("the first in Latin America", in the words of Milagros), they continue to care for the dozens of dogs that run around the lawn of the place.

Milagros Caninos is supported by donations, which are used to rehabilitate them and, later, train them to be therapy partners, and to donate blood to other dogs.

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