Dave Bautista has arms covered in tattoos and a career built on muscle, but in his Tampa home, others call the shots: four pit bulls no one else wanted.
It all began in 2019, when he adopted Maggie and Ollie, both 6 years old, after their owner surrendered them to a shelter for having a baby. “I needed them, they needed me”, Bautista said. Then came the hardest story: a puppy found eating garbage in a cemetery, with a metal chain embedded in her neck that had to be removed surgically. The actor offered a reward of 5.000 dollars to find the person who abused her, and ended up adopting her himself. He named her Penny and promised she would never suffer again. In 2023, on Valentine’s Day, he added Talulah when his friends Chris Pratt and Millie Bobby Brown convinced him.
Today, he collaborates with the ASPCA to raise awareness of pit bulls, the breed that spends the most time waiting in shelters across the United States. Behind the intimidating physique lies a kind heart that chose the four dogs the world had decided to ignore.
