This lovely little girl is Sophie. Sophie was discovered by a rescue in Croatia wandering the streets looking very underweight, tired and frightened. When they approached her she was very nervous but didn't show any aggression at all and allow the to pet her. It was then that they noticed she was full and milk and realised she had recently had pups. After a short while Sophie started to wander off and the volunteers followed her. Sophie, being a wonderful mother had her pups safely hidden in a barn and by her actions of going back to them the volunteers were able to rescue them and her.
Sadly this is an all too common story. Often people will own a bitch and not have her spayed, and then when they find she is pregnant just throw her out on the streets. As a stray dog life is unbearably difficult. There is very little food or water and the bigger dogs will often fight off smaller dogs for any scraps and drop that are available. As a small dog it is amazing that Sophie survived and a testament to her strength of character, fighting on every day to try to get enough food to be able to produce milk to look after her pups, and finding them safe refuge where there is so little.
Sophie was very lucky to be found when she was. She was very weak, every ounce of her mental and physical strength being drained from her in her fight for her pups survival. She was taken to the rescue shelter and treated for the ticks and fleas and for the small cuts and grazes she had. At first she was given small meals as her stomach was not used to proper meals and gradually this increased. She continued to feed her pups and as her strength grew of course, so did theirs. She was still nervous of the volunteers for a while but seemed to understand they were trying to help and allowed them to treat her and her pups. Before long she grew more confident around them and started to show her beautiful character and sweet personality. Her gentleness and loving nature amazed everyone as on the streets she would have been chased by people and had things thrown at her ..and beaten. And yet, this little girl with a huge heart forgave human kind and allowed them to help her and her babies.
After a while the pups were weaned and found homes leaving Sophie. The volunteers at the shelter work very hard to give the dogs what they need but Sophie just craved love and affection and with so many dogs to care for they couldn't spend the time with her she so needed. Also, as a small dog she had to share a kennel with many other larger dogs and found it hard to get to the food before them, or she was pushed away. Although much better than the streets Sophie still needed help.
Then a turning point in her life came when a lovely lady in the UK offered to foster her and another small dog called Charlie who had become best friends. They were brought over and for the first time found out what it was like to live in a real home with love and affection whenever they needed it. And, Sophie decided of course that this was the perfect life being the affectionate little girl she is.
She has come on in leaps and bounds in the short time she has been here. From the very start she loved her foster mother but she was still very nervous. As her confidence is growing so her nervousness is lessening although due to being hit on the streets if a hand is raised to stroke her she still ducks her head down. With patience, a lot of love and time she will get better .. but such bad memories are bound to effect her for some time. However, even when nervous she does not show any aggression at all. The foster carer is now working on taking her out on the leader. This is something that had to be timed carefully to make sure she was ready for all the different noises she would hear and new things she would see. Bit by bit she is getting less and less nervous when out, but again she needs patience, time and understanding. But, as her trust in the people around her grows, so will her confidence.
Sophie is an absolute sweetheart. Her favourite pastime is falling asleep while being cuddled. She loves her foster mother and her foster mother loves her but it is now time for her to find a forever home .. a place where she can live the rest of her life in safety and security and with all the love this little fighter deserves.
No comments:
Post a Comment