There is no information about when his ear was injured or when the facial scars occurred.
Those gaps should remain gaps.
Benny's current behavior provides enough of a story without inventing his past.
Right now, he is inside a shelter kennel.
People are passing in front of him.
And Benny keeps returning to the same worn stuffed animal whenever someone stops.
Some Visitors May Never See the Toy
Timing matters.
A person glances into Benny's kennel.
They see the scars.
They see the damaged ear.
Benny suddenly turns and runs toward the back.
If they leave immediately, that is the entire interaction they experience.
They never see why Benny ran away from the door.
He was going to his bed.
He was getting the toy.
By the time Benny turns around with it in his mouth, the person may already be several kennels away.
Benny still carries it forward.
The stuffed animal reaches the gate.
But there is nobody standing there anymore.
So eventually the toy goes back inside.
Benny waits for another opportunity.
The Next Visitor Gets the Same Offer
New footsteps approach.
Another person stops.
Benny immediately moves.
He goes back for the stuffed animal he has already carried to the gate again and again.
He grips it gently.
Then he returns.
This time, perhaps the visitor waits.
They see Benny coming.
They see the old toy.
Then Benny lowers his muzzle and starts pushing it through the bars toward them.
For someone who had formed an opinion from his appearance, those extra seconds can reveal behavior they would otherwise never have known existed.
The scars have not disappeared.