Painfully matted, scared, and alone on the streets in Southern California, Abby’s life was a constant struggle. But after a kindly neighbor called for help, three members of a dedicated rescue team were finally able to win the homeless dog’s trust.
With Abby in their safe hands, a truly overwhelming transformation followed.
The rescue team received a heartbreaking photo of Abby taken by a resident who lived east of L.A. who had been seeing her in the neighborhood for some time.
“Abby lived out in the desert for over two years,” Hope for Paws founder Eldad Hagar explained. “Loreta Frankonyte, JoAnn Wiltz, and I headed out to this mobile home park about 2.5 hours east of Los Angeles.”
A local woman named Joie had been kind enough to feed Abby for two whole years but had never been able to get close enough to touch the matted, neglected pooch.
The rescue team’s footage depicts their exciting first encounter with Abby, who immediately comes trotting down the street when Joie calls for her, hoping for food. Seemingly nervous, she stops upon seeing the strangers from Hope for Paws and maintains a safe distance.
The experienced dog-saving team employ a well-practiced strategy: throwing bitesize chunks of cheeseburger toward the hungry dog, hoping to entice her toward them. It works; Abby follows a trail of burger bits toward Loreta, and she manages to grab her gently but firmly by the scruff just before JoAnn drops a hula-hoop net over her to secure her rescue.
Soon, the team had a leash on her, and with some scissors, they clipped some shaggy strands of fur covering the sweet dog’s eyes so that she could finally see the world around her. They scanned Abby’s body, but she had no microchip and therefore no record of a previous owner.
Before the rescuers shipped out in the Hope for Paws SUV with their tiny charge, members of the neighborhood crowded round to offer their thanks to the rescuers that were finally taking care of the well-known vagrant pup.
The team headed off to the vet with Abby, where they clipped away over a pound (approx. 454 g) of dirty, matted fur from her tiny body, even finding shards of metal wire embedded in the knots. Abby let them work during the entire hour-long procedure—seeming to know that she was in good hands.
Abby was then treated to a warm bath and plenty of cuddles.
After being spayed, vaccinated, and microchipped, the tiny pup was taken into foster care by Hope for Paws’ own Eldad and Loreta. The pair worked on gaining even more of Abby’s trust by introducing her to their own 17-year-old rescue dog, Bonnie.
It started to work; on Thanksgiving 2019, Abby wagged her tail and started to show signs of loving life, playfully hopping about and barking with her human saviors and Bonnie.
