Lena Dunham’s discreet decision to check her dog, Lamby, into the Zen Dog canine-rehabilitation center last winter sparked controversy when BARC shelter spokesperson Robert Vazquez publicly refuted Dunham’s claim that Lamby’s behavior was “dangerous†due to suffering “terrible abuse as a pup.†Dunham then refuted Vazquez’s refutation on Instagram, arguing that he had “a very different account†of Lamby’s issues than she did. And now, a third party has weighed in to back Dunham: Matt Beisner, the man who runs the Zen Dog. “He didn’t want to be touched and he didn’t want to be handled,†he told People on Saturday, of Lamby’s first days in the facility. “When he came to us there were days where we had to carry his crate out to the yard and open it to let him come out because we couldn’t safely put our hands near him to get a leash on him to walk him.†(Beisner previously told the Cut that Lamby was “a hot mess†upon entering the facility.) Lamby also “drew blood†from at least three employees, according to Beisner, which was not uncommon as many dogs behave differently inside of a shelter. The Zen Dog further confirmed that Lamby was adopted by a staff member after initial resistance from Dunham to formally let him go, way back in March.
There may yet be more sources to further muddy the waters — indeed, Dunham is no stranger to lasting controversy — but it seems safe to say that Vazquez was a bit presumptuous in his attempt at discrediting the actress’s motivation. Beisner said as much (and more) in reflecting on the controversy that Vazquez inflamed: “I think if we spent less time and energy attacking this individual owner … and more energy talking about how we could help dogs, we would have made a big difference in the past week.â€