Sometimes, miracles do happen ❤️
Published on June 27, 2024 at 12:34 PM
Last year, animal rescuer Lidia Elizabeth Reyes Cespedes took in an elderly stray dog from the streets near her home in Chile. She named him Viejito — “Little Old Man” — and promised to care for him to the end.
“I told him I’m going to give him a decent life for the time he has left,” Cespedes told The Dodo. “I expected him to live 6 months. He lived a year.”
Cespedes, who at any given time cares for dozens of dogs, typically tries to find new homes for the pups she rescues. But Viejito never got the chance to experience the warmth of a family to call his very own. But Cespedes loved him all the same.
So, when it came time to bury Viejito, Cespedes and a companion ventured into the countryside, finding a quiet spot to lay his body to rest.
But then a sound struck their ears.
“I found a tree, beneath which we would bury Viejito,” Cespedes said. “Then suddenly, we heard a puppy whimpering. We turned and saw this dog. We were surprised. We looked, and there was no one else around.”
The puppy ran up to the Cespedes, seeming to regard her as an old friend.
https://volume.thedodo.com/embed/f75d4a5c2?autoplay=false&loop=true&placement=article&player_type=chorus&tracking=article:lede&privacy_consent=allLidia Elizabeth Reyes Cespedes
Cespedes was struck by the significance of that moment — being greeted by a young dog at the very moment she’d come to bid a last farewell to Viejito. But the moment didn’t end there.
As Cespedes dug a hole for Viejito’s body, the puppy lingered close by.
“She laid down, calmly observing what we were doing.”
When the task was complete, the mystery puppy rested atop the mound where Viejito had been laid to rest.
Cespedes suspects that the puppy may have recently been abandoned in the area. But online, where Cespedes shared word of her encounter, many of her friends saw it something bordering on otherworldly.
“Viejito sent you another angel,” one wrote.
As Cespedes and her companion prepared to leave, the puppy perked back up.
Nube, as she’s now known, would be coming home with them.
https://volume.thedodo.com/embed/7254f63c3?autoplay=false&loop=true&placement=article&player_type=chorus&tracking=article:lede&privacy_consent=allLidia Elizabeth Reyes Cespedes
Nube has joined Cespedes’ pack of rescue dogs at home, where she’s been protected ever since.
“She’s well taken care of with us,” Cespedes said.
Cespedes hopes to find a forever home for Nube — something that Viejito, before her, had never gotten the chance to know.
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Woman Finds Dog Left Tied To Park Sign — Then Reads The Heartbreaking Note From His Family
“Please help” 💔
By Ashley Ortiz
The other day, a woman in San Diego, California, named Erica answered a frantic call for help from a neighbor that stopped her in her tracks.
“My neighbor was out walking in a park near our house, and he came upon this dog tied to a fence,” Erica told The Dodo. “He knew [that] I rescue dogs, especially pit bulls … so, he called me to come help.”
Erica raced to Balboa Park and soon found a gray pit bull tied to a sign in a section of the park called Juniper’s Staircase. When she approached the dog, she discovered a crumpled piece of paper with a devastating note left by his previous family.
“Just got him, and it was [too] much for me,” the note, posted on Instagram, read. “Nice dog. Can’t keep him, and [the] original owner doesn’t want him back. Please help.”
The dog, whom Erica named Juniper, looked up at her with a fatigued smile and a wagging tail. She didn’t know how long he’d been there, but she refused to let him stay there for a minute longer. Luckily, the pup was extremely friendly and was more than happy to follow her lead.
“Everyone is this guy’s new best friend, so it was easy to get him into the car,” Erica wrote on Instagram. “In fact, he was THRILLED to go for a ride.”
Juniper couldn’t stop smiling as he and Erica drove to her house. When he got there, he ran straight to the toys that Erica’s three pit bulls shared.
“He was so excited about toys and a dog bed,” Erica said.
Erica spent the following hours searching for a more suitable foster home for Juniper, as he had a hard time meshing with her other dogs. Sadly, she couldn’t find anyone, so she took him to the San Diego Humane Society (SDHS), where he could hopefully find a home.
Although she had to ultimately bring him to the shelter, Erica wasn’t abandoning Juniper. She promised to visit him every day and kept her word.
“I went in every day while he was in there on his ‘stray’ hold and until they could neuter him,” Erica said. “I brought him and all [of the] dogs on his ward treats.”
Once Juniper was neutered, he became eligible for foster care through SDHS. And although Erica’s house was a bit overwhelming for him, she finally found the perfect foster family to care for him while he waits for a forever home.
After waiting a few days to see if someone would claim Juniper, to no avail, she returned to the shelter and picked him up for his second, and hopefully final, foster experience.
It’s been a few days since Juniper went to his new foster home, and he is thrilled to be in such a cozy and loving place. Juniper is thriving, but he’s still looking for a permanent home. As sweet as he is, Erica is confident that the perfect family will find him soon.
“I don’t think he will have any problems finding a home with how extremely friendly he is!” Erica wrote.
In the meantime, Juniper, who now goes by Juno, will continue soaking up all the love that his foster parents have to give and feeling grateful that someone at the park stopped to save his life.
To inquire about adopting Juniper, you can email the San Diego Humane Society at info@sdhumane.org.
To help pups like Juniper get the care they need, you can donate to the San Diego Humane Society here.
To keep up with Juniper and see Erica’s other rescues, you can follow her on Instagram.
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