Rescuer finds dog who's 'only bones' under bushes — then realizes how beautiful she is
It was mid-October 2022 when dog rescuer Takis, of Takis Shelter (TS), received a call for help that made him drop everything. He’d been rescuing stray dogs around Ierapetra, Crete, for years, but this call from three Good Samaritans was instantly concerning.
The Good Samaritans reported finding a blonde, frail dog hiding in the bushes in “the middle of nowhere,” and it seemed as though she’d been surviving on her own for months.
When Takis arrived at the location, he couldn’t believe just how skinny the poor dog was.
“We found her at the right time because she has given up,” Takis wrote on Facebook. “[S]he is only bones, and she has no power at all.”
After years of experience, Takis knows that some stray dogs need time to warm up to their rescuers. But this pup seemed comfortable with him from the moment they met.
Takis crouched near the bushes to earn the dog’s trust, with savory treats in hand. To his surprise, the docile girl extended her neck and gently accepted the food. When he offered her a second bite, he carefully slipped a leash around her neck to slowly coax her out.
You can watch footage from the rescue here:
The rescuer quickly realized, however, that the emaciated pup couldn’t even stand, and he knew she wouldn’t be able to walk to the car alongside him. So, he scooped her up and carried her to the car, promising that things would get better soon.
“She’s too weak to walk,” Takis said in the rescue video. “Look at her face, her eyes, how sad she is. You will not believe how lucky you are, beautiful girl …”
At TS headquarters that night, the resilient girl received a cozy bed of her own and a name: Nala. She settled in amongst a pack of other rescued dogs at TS and fell into a deep sleep for the first time in months.
The next day, Nala went to the vet for the first time for a full checkup. That’s when the team learned that she was dealing with pyometra, a serious infection of the uterus, as well as diabetes.
Nala’s diagnosis required emergency surgery, one that her caregivers worried she wouldn’t wake up from. But Nala proved to be a survivor, making it through the four-hour surgery without a hitch.
The surgery helped relieve Nala of pain, but her recovery journey was still far from over. She required a strict feeding plan in order to gain weight safely, with specific food that wouldn’t affect her diabetes. But her caregivers refused to give up on Nala, and it seemed like she was just as determined as they were.
You can see Nala receive love and pets here:
So, Nala kept fighting. She ate all her meals, accepted her insulin shots like a champ and slept as much as she could. Eventually, she reached a healthy weight, and she finally started feeling like herself again.
“Now she is a princess in the house with her own bedroom, and she is very strong and happy!” Takis wrote on Facebook.
You can watch her remarkable transformation here:
It’s been just over three years since Takis rescued Nala, and while she’s just one of many pups running around TS, he will always have a soft spot for her.
From expecting her not to make it through the first few nights to cuddling with her three years later, Takis is still in awe of just how lucky this sweet girl is.
“[M]iracles happen …” Takis wrote.
