Some dogs suffer through serious neglect. The stories are hard to hear and even more painful to imagine. This is one of those tough stories. Cala started out with a rough lot in life. Thankfully, a rescue group found her before it was too late. It took lots of hard work, but Cala made a stunning turnaround.
Surviving Abuse
Cala lived near San Jose, Costa Rica. Cala’s human, a mechanic, kept her as a guard dog. However, according to The Dodo, he rarely gave her any food and did not get her regular medical attention.
In the pictures of Cala pre-rescue, the stoic girl sits in a pile of rags. Her human wrapped a short chain around her neck. The chain prevented Cala from lying down. Her head hung stiffly from the chain.
The image is sickening.
Thankfully, neighbors noticed Cala. She was in dire straits, having trouble breathing and keeping her head up. The neighbors called the local police and Territorio de Zaguates, a local dog sanctuary that cares for hundreds of dogs.
Lya Battle, the founder of Territorio de Zaguates, said, “I felt desperately sad and frustrated. The picture I first saw of her showed a pitiful creature robbed of its dignity and ready to give up — a dog whose spirit had been broken and was just waiting for the end to come while living a never-ending nightmare.”
Acting quickly, the police and rescue workers removed Cala from the awful conditions and brought her to Territorio de Zaguates.
Road to Recovery
Although rescuers brought Cala to a better place, the malnourished pup had a long journey ahead.
“Her healing process was slow, and the humans around her still had to cause her pain through the curing of her wounds, especially the gash in her neck caused by years of hanging from a tight metal chain around her neck. Nursing her was as painful for her as it was for us, but eventually, she understood that after the pain came love and treats, so she learned to deal with it like a champ,” Lya said.
At first, Cala was wary of the other dogs at the sanctuary. Lya believed Cala may have had a traumatic experience involving other dogs or humans. Eventually, she began to warm to the others.
“We saw Cala go from a weak, feeble animal, too depressed to care, to a stronger creature willing to stand up for herself … She went from fearing humans to trusting them and even ‘bugging’ them for attention,” Lya said.
A Shocking Test
Unfortunately, that was not the end of Cala’s struggles. Shortly after she moved to the sanctuary, someone snuck inside and laid out sausages baited with poison. Sixteen dogs died. Amazingly, though Cala had eaten a sausage, she survived.
Lya said, “I think there are no coincidences in life. Cala survived years of neglect, years of torture, years of hunger and illness. She was hanging on to life for a reason and she had already found out that life had been worth the long wait when again humans appeared in the picture wanting to hurt her. So although we were devastated by the loss of all the others, that fact that Cala had managed to pull through was just so fitting to her spirit.”
After all of this, Cala found a foster home with another dog! She learned to love the companionship of other pups and humans. This dog exhibits resiliency at its finest. Three cheers for Cala!
Featured image care of Territorio de Zaguates Facebook
Toledo, United States.
