When the Los Angeles-based rescue group recently received a call about two dogs living under an abandoned house, they knew they would have to handle the situation with caution. Yet, even with all their experience, nothing could prepare them for the startling truth about these dogs…
It’s important for animal rescuers to approach each case with its own specific care. This is something the Los Angeles, California, rescue group Hope For Paws took into consideration when the team recently responded to a call concerning two stray dogs.
The caller, who wished to remain anonymous, warned the rescuers of an abandoned home where two dogs had recently taken up shelter. Not knowing much about their past, the Hope For Paws team would have to be as careful as possible.
When the rescuers arrived at the severely dilapidated home, it didn’t look as if anyone had lived there in a long time. That was when they learned the truth about how the dogs ended up there—and they were in complete disbelief…
The two dogs desperately needed to be rescued from their dire situation. While the volunteers from Hope For Paws had seen many horrible cases over their long history, even they could be shocked from time to time…
As volunteers Lisa Arturo and JoAnn Wiltz approached the backyard, they were informed by a neighbor that the dogs’ owners had moved away six months prior. They’d simply left the poor pooches to survive on scraps and seek shelter under the home or on the streets.
The neighbor had learned of the dogs’ predicament and realized one of them was approachable, so she took it home to keep. The second dog, however, was suffering from trust and abandonment issues—and he’d run away at the sight of a human.
Realizing that time was of the essence, the rescuers quickly got to work on bringing him to safety. Although, gaining the pup’s trust would prove far more difficult than they’d ever imagined…
To make matters worse, Flash, as they began calling him, would easily retreat to a place where the volunteers couldn’t go. Every time Lisa or JoAnn would move toward him, Flash would simply scamper underneath the old house, far out of their reach.
No matter how hard they tried to get Flash to trust them, he would run and hide whenever they tried to grab him. If they had any hopes of bringing him to safety, they would need to devise a better plan!
That’s when the rescuers decided their best option would be to set a trap. They planned to place a cage outside of the area where he was hiding. Then, they would simply walk away and wait for him to go inside the cage. Simple, right?
Once the cage was in place just a few feet away from the home, Lisa and JoAnn slowly stepped back. It wasn’t long before Flash poked out his head. Slowly, he began to emerge from underneath the house to investigate…
With a soft towel, treats, and plenty of fresh water inside the cage, it was only a matter of time before Flash walked right in… or so they thought. Lisa and JoAnn stood nearby, anxiously awaiting Flash’s next moves.
Finally, Flash stepped into the cage. The door closed behind him, but it didn’t fully lock—and he quickly escaped into the yard. Luckily, Lisa and JoAnn quickly blocked the entrance to his hiding spot beneath the house so he wouldn’t be able to duck in there again.
Lisa and JoAnn approached the frightened pup. Naturally, he retreated toward his hiding place, only to find it blocked off. Before he could run away again, Lisa was able to grab one of his paws using a snare.
Even though Flash fought to get free, Lisa managed to hold on and place a leash around his neck. Then, she tried to calm him down. She and JoAnn needed to place him in the cage and bring him to safety.
After what turned out to be a great deal of coaxing, Flash was finally ready to leave that horrible house. Though he didn’t know it, he was well on his way to finding a new forever home.
Flash was promptly brought to the veterinarian for a checkup. Before he could be adopted, however, he needed to resolve his abandonment issues. Thankfully, volunteers from an organization known as Sunny Day Acres offered to help!
With their assistance, Flash quickly began to show real signs of progress—and he finally learned to trust humans once more! Now it was time for the new and improved Flash to find a better home.
Before long, Flash was adopted by a loving family! In the span of just a few short weeks, he’d undergone quite the transformation and he was well on his way to being a completely happy dog again.
Thanks to rescuers like Lisa and JoAnn from Hope For Paws, Flash was finally able to recover from being abandoned by his former owners. He made quite the turnaround from when they first found him. Just watch Flash’s incredible rescue here…
What an amazing journey! He might have been dealt a difficult hand, but Flash is certainly on his way to leading a normal life from here on out.