All About Miss Peaches, Dave Portnoy's Adorable Rescue Dog
She has a true "rags to riches" story!
Published April 17 2024, 12:43 p.m. ET
If you haven't yet heard about the Famous Miss Peaches, have I got some exciting news for you! This is about to be your favorite animal rescue story, since hers involves everything a good tale needs. Not only was she saved from truly awful conditions by animal rescuers, but her story caught the eye of the uber wealthy Dave Portnoy (founder of Barstool Sports), who fell in love with the sweet dog as soon as he saw her little face.
Since Portnoy adopted Miss Peaches in early 2024, the pair have become something of a success story for rescue pets everywhere, reminding the pit bull's hundreds of thousands of followers (yes, she has her own social media pages) why it's so important to choose adoption when bringing an animal into the family. You can learn more about Miss Peaches and how she stole both Portnoy and the world's heart by reading her story below.
Miss Peaches was rescued alongside 26 dogs caught up in a hoarding situation.
The sad story of Miss Peaches went public after she and more than two dozen other dogs were rescued by the LifeLine Animal Project. The Atlanta-based group shared the story of these dogs, catching the attention of the Barstool founder, who just knew he had to get involved. After a successful meeting in February 2024, Dave Portnoy decided to adopt the 6-year-old pit bull. Since then, the pair have been inseparable, and her new human has been lovingly documenting their relationship in an effort to help others like her.
On Instagram and TikTok, Portnoy shares photos and videos with Miss Peaches, featuring the pup's cute outfits, her impossibly adorable walk, and even the traditional doggy antics she gets into. And while all of that would be enough to explain her mass appeal, it seems like her humble approach to her big change in life — her TikTok profile jokes that she went "from the outhouse to the penthouse" — and the way it's being used to help others, has really captured everyone's heart.
Ever since Miss Peaches went viral, Portnoy has been selling shirts and other merch to raise awareness and support the LifeLine Animal Project, telling Fox & Friends during a February 2024 interview that he was able to raise $150,000.
That number only continued to climb, with Fox & Friends getting an update the following month from Portnoy, in which he shared that his famous pup had raised half a million dollars for animals in need. What a good girl!
Miss Peaches uses her fame to help other dogs in need.
Even though she's a pampered pooch, Miss Peaches still uses her platform to promote her "adopt, don't shop" message. And, it's clearly resonating with her followers. Her social media accounts are full of comments from people and pet profiles alike, applauding Miss Peaches and her human for taking such a public stance against dog breeding.
According to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), there are 2,000 licensed dog breeders in the U.S. But, the licensing application, as well as the inspections that take place as part of the process, don't necessarily increase the standards of care for the animals caught up in the system, allowing for environments like the one Miss Peaches was rescued from to continue to exist.
Hopefully with the promotion of the "adopt, don't shop" philosophy, Miss Peaches and her human can help to reduce those numbers so that fewer dogs have to go through what she went through, allowing more pets like her to find their fur-ever homes.
