“He would not stop giving hugs and kisses.”
The other day, Shelby Davis drove 10 hours from Denver, Colorado, to Arizona for a work event. She pulled into her hotel shortly before midnight, only to find that check-in had ended a few hours prior.
With no way of getting inside, Davis looped around the parking lot. That’s when she saw a pair of heartbroken eyes staring at her in the dark.
As the director of Soul Dog Rescue, Shelby Davis recognized right away that the little creature watching her was a dog. She wasn’t expecting to find a pup so late at night, but, luckily, she was fully equipped to rescue him.
Davis approached the pup, who let her pick him up and bring him back to the van. The dog was visibly sick — he was incredibly skinny and his fur was patchy — but he perked up as soon as he was safe in Davis’ vehicle.
“She put him in the van, and he didn’t want to leave,” Molly Steele, the pup’s current foster mom, told The Dodo. “He was very happy to be off the streets.”
After having to fend for himself for so long, the dog — later named Braydon — completely let his guard down with Davis. He warmed up in her company and snacked on some food before hunkering down for a long ride back to Denver.
Davis drove back to Colorado that night and brought Braydon straight to the vet the next day. After a much-needed bath and checkup, the sweet pup curled up in his kennel and began treatment for his skin and weight.
As a Soul Dog Rescue volunteer, Steele fell head-over-heels in love with Braydon from the moment she met him. She decided to foster him less than a week later, and his reaction to meeting the rest of her family proved that the feeling was mutual.
“Braydon immediately loved being with his new foster family,” Steele said. “He would not stop giving hugs and kisses. It was like he already knew us.”
Once a lonely street dog, Braydon jumped all over his new family as if he’d never lived without them.
When he got to their house, Braydon’s reaction to finally having a home was even more emotional.
“He went from one dog bed to the next,” Steele said. “I don’t think he had ever slept on something so soft.”
As Braydon settled into his new foster home, his personality blossomed.
“He is the sweetest, most gentle soul,” Steele said. “He loves to sit on the couch and just snuggle! He also loves anyone he meets and gives them hugs and kisses.”
On top of bonding with his new human family, Braydon had to learn how to live with his new dog siblings. Thankfully, he fit right into the pack.
“He loves any dog he has met,” Steele said. “We have three other rescue dogs, and he gets along with all of them.”
As of now, Braydon’s not yet available for adoption. His caregivers are currently focused on getting him healthy before sending him off to a forever home. But when he is finally ready, Steele knows that he’ll be the perfect addition to someone’s family.
In the meantime, Steele and her family will keep showering Braydon with the love that he’s always deserved.
“He knows he’s safe,” Steele said. “And that he’ll never have to suffer again.”