In the rescue world we are always reading stories of dogs being abused and it just goes on and on and along with those stories there are often horrific pictures of animal abuse...
I don't have any horrific pictures to show you today I have a story that touches my heart and I hope it will do the same for you....
THIS IS LUKA'S STORY
Hi my name is Luka and I'm a young female heading dog who was living a life of drifting and finding ways to fill my belly with food and a warm, dry place to sleep....one day I found a big dry place to lay my head down and rest my weary eyes and maybe forage around and find some thing to make the hunger go away.... Life was tough and I had never felt the cuddle of a loving human or food on a plate and fresh water and oh a warm soft bed.....I was living my life in this barn for now as it seemed like it might be a good place to stay safe.
I decided to settle in this barn until one day this man arrived and although I tried to run and get away he caught me and took me to a place where there were lots of other dogs and a lot of them were barking and it was so very scary for me so I curled up in a ball and closed my eyes hoping I'd wake up back in the big barn... but sadly when I opened my eyes I was still in this place they call a shelter. Suddenly I heard someone coming to the door of my pen and there he was such kind eyes and a gentle voice ....and he had another human with him and she had a very gentle voice and they talked to me like I was special...no one had ever done that before but maybe that was a trick ...I needed to be very careful of these humans.
I heard them sayIng the farmer who owned the barn, you know the one that I thought was my barn, he had called them and told them I was there and now what was to become of me as they were saying I was so very fearful could I actually be rehomed ? Then the lady said let me take her and I will look after her ...who was this special human?
The lady was called Chris and she would come and visit me at the shelter every day for several days ....she would talk to me, and she seemed to like me..she would give me yummy little treats. I felt so very special but then she would leave me there and was she going to come back?
Then one day she came to give me treats and they took me out of my pen and we went a different way not out to the yard but out the door into the big wide open space , a little scary and then she said to me ' Come Luka" so I did feeling very scared and unsure I jumped into her car and she took me to a place that was very gentle while they patted me and said I was very beautiful and then they poked a needle in me "ouch" what was that? When I looked at my new human Chris she gave me a pat and said Id be ok and now I was officially a healthy dog as Id been to a place called the vets.
We went for a big drive in a car and I arrived at a new place should I be scared, should I try escape what was to become of me?
I was in a place they call home and this was the compound which looked like a tricky place to escape so I waited and my human Chris who visited me all through the day and she would take me walking on this thing they call a lead and give me treats. There were other doggies living here and sometimes they would come and visit me. They were really friendly I might get to like them ...maybe?????
A few days later we were out walking and I just wanted to hang out with this my human Chris because she was so kind and gentle and for some reason she took the lead off me on this walk and I decided to stay near her as she had yummy treats in her pocket and she was sharing them with me....I met a man (I don't really like these types of humans so I need to be careful of this one might keep my distance....and stick with Chris but they seem to like each other ???? He doesn't seem to worried about me so I will just keep an eye on him!!!!! Oh no then he tried to come towards me so I wanted to do a runner but I don't want to leave Chris and she has those treats...I decided to stay and I never realised at the time that was the best ever decision.
Everyday we do the same thing and we keep going back to that shed where that man is and Chris is talking to him and he seems like he might want to be my friend, so maybe he is a special human too? Still decided to keep my distance.
After five days of living in the compound Chris came and got me and she took me into a big place she calls her home...wow this was like a palace so warm and the other dogs were sleeping in here and it looked like I was going to be in here in a new home called a crate....by the fire so nice and snug and I got to spend so much time with Chris and that man who looked like he actually liked me...
Then on one of our special walks I kept seeing those other dogs and they were so friendly....I wanted to go and see what it was like being up close to those dogs so I did and I got to run and chase the dogs and a thing you call a ball....I was actually loving this exercise and my human Chris was there all the time watching over me so I knew I was safe.
When I would run back to check she was there she would look at me and say ''Luka good girl you are playing" Not sure what "playing " is but man its really fun....
Every time Id run back to my human Chris I would look up at her and she was always smiling and her eyes were full of love and on this particular day her eyes had something else it was like watery drops like her eyes were raining or something and she cuddled me is a way that I felt like I was safe and warm and most of all loved as if an angel was wrapping her wings around me ....This is the moment I decided my new human Chris was my Earth Angel . This is the day I realised its the start of something really special and Im one of the lucky Wandering Angels .
We are excited to share Luka's story so will keep you posted on her progress with her beautiful fosterer Chris Fifield xxx