More than a thousand people responded to a Facebook post wanting to save Elton, a bulldog-mix

Just two days ago, a bulldog-mix was dropped off at a high-kill rabies control shelter in Jackson, Tenn., a town of about 65,000 just two hours outside of Nashville. A plea for help was posted Wednesday on a Facebook page dedicated to saving pets facing euthanasia.

More than a thousand people responded.

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It was the dog’s story that pushed him past the other sad faces – many of which still need homes – that fill up the Jackson TN Euthanasia Facebook page: “This guy was signed over to RC, not bc he’s mean or bc he tears things up, but because… His owner says he’s gay!”

The owner’s reasoning, according to the rescue group, was that “he hunched another male dog so his owner threw him away bc he refuses to have a ‘gay’ dog … Don’t let this gorgeous dog die bc his owner is ignorant of normal dog behavior!”

Thanks to the Facebook campaign, he has found a home with Stephanie Fryns, a veterinary tech from Jackson, reports ABC News. Now, he goes by Elton.

Elton’s “pretty friendly so far,” she says. “He’s pretty scared of everything, which is understandable.”

She adds: “But he loved the car ride.”