The other day, the folks at Stray Rescue of St. Louis (SRSL) made a heartbreaking discovery while driving through the busy Missouri capital.
An abandoned dog lay next to an overflowing dumpster blanketed with fallen leaves, and she was in more trouble than the crew initially thought.
“We pulled up to find a dog [lying] in a pile of trash, looking up at us,” SRSL wrote on Facebook. “[She was] tied to a dumpster with a cable, and the cable was all twisted around a fence.”
The poor girl had nowhere to go and no way of untangling herself. Her only option was to curl up on the mound of garbage and hope that someone would find her.
Luckily, Lochmann and her fellow rescuers knew just how to help her. The team was determined to cut the dog loose, but the scared girl wasn’t initially convinced of their plan.
As soon as they got close, she became instantly defensive.
But Lochmann refused to give up. She opened a can of Vienna sausages and slowly won the girl over, one small treat at a time.
The pup, later named Snapple, eventually let the team secure a leash around her neck and cut her free. She still had her guard up, but Snapple’s demeanor instantly changed when she realized her wish had finally come true.
The team drove her straight to their shelter and gave her a much-needed bath, followed by a medical exam. After Snapple received a clean bill of health, the team put all their focus into earning her trust.
“She’s been through a lot and doesn’t trust us yet,” SRSL wrote. “Our amazing team is working with her to show her that she will never be hurt, discarded, tossed aside or abandoned again.”
Snapple’s personality has blossomed since arriving at SRSL, but the little survivor is still recovering emotionally from her time as a street dog.
And even though she’s currently available for adoption, Snapple has a safe place to heal for as long as she needs.
“She can let those walls down when she’s ready,” SRSL wrote. “[SRSL] gives dogs the time they need, each on their own unique timeline.”