A dog who was left to "fend for himself" for a month has found his forever home after a group of friends pooled together to save him.
Animal lover Anna Kelly, 29, was distraught when her friend, Kayla Goldmon told her about a neglected dog who had been abandoned by his owners. Goldmon went to visit the dog daily to feed him and earn his trust. She spoke with neighbors who said the owners moved away a month prior, leaving the senior chow chow by himself.
Rescuing the pup, named Balou, was a no brainer for Goldmon and Kelly, from Laurel, Mississippi. But he was very nervous around people and Kelly told Newsweek she was worried they'd "never get hands on him."
For several weeks, they tried to trap Balou in a crate. Despite their best efforts, nothing seemed to work, and he became increasingly stressed.
They got help from an animal rescue to set up a live trap but Balou was too smart and stayed away from it.
"We knew our best bet would be to catch him by hand," Kelly said.
"Kayla and I fed him lots of snacks and tried to get him familiar with us and the leash. I got the leash around him a couple of times, but each time he would get out of it and run away," she continued.
It was clear they were going to need more help, so Kelly called two of her friends, Candice Beech and Allie Pipkins. Both women have been involved in rescues before and Kelly calls them "the dream team" for catching nervous dogs.
However, the four women were having no luck after standing outside for hours in the rain trying to get a leash on Balou and get him in a crate.
Kelly said: "It was reaching the point when we were about to call it a day and come back another day. We were standing around talking, and Balou was just walking around. He started to scratch, and it was like a light bulb turned on in our heads at the same time. He was distracted just enough for Candice to get a lead around him."
"We all cheered, and Kayla immediately started crying because she had really started to give up hope. Seeing her so emotional made me realize that she needed this rescue just as much as Balou," Kelly told Newsweek.
Balou was taken to the vet to get checked over shortly after. He was estimated to be around 8 to 10 years old, with a severe flea allergy (causing his hair loss), was missing several teeth and was heartworm positive.
Scans also showed that Balou was likely hit by a car at some point, leaving his pelvis crushed, which had not been treated. As a result, the senior dog has very severe arthritis now
Goldmon invested a lot of time and emotion in rescuing Balou, and there was no way she could turn her back on him. So, once he got the all clear from the vet, she went to collect her newest family member.
Kelly said: "He is very scared, but he's familiar with Kayla and loves her. As soon as she picked him up, he ran to her and was so happy to see a familiar face. He stole her heart and quickly became a Goldman."
Balou has a long road to recovery but Goldmon is taking each day as it comes and ensuring that he feels loved.
Kelly shared Balou's story on TikTok (@itsannakellyyy) and it went viral with over 212,000 views and 11,700 likes in a matter of days. She has continued posting updates about Balou online.
As a devoted animal lover, Kelly has been involved in animal rescues for around six years, but she's never seen any stories capture as much attention as this. She hopes it will inspire others to help an animal in need in any way they can.
"I'm so grateful that Balou gets a happy ending to live out his golden years, but unfortunately there's so many others in need of help," Kelly said. "I took in a neglected husky several months ago and we've had zero luck finding him a home—which is crazy because Koda is nearly perfect. Rescuing and fostering is a huge part of my life, which is why I'd love to find Koda a home so I can continue helping animals in need."
With over 380 comments on the TikTok post so far, internet users have praised the friends for saving Balou and not giving up on him.
One comment reads: "Thank you for caring, and shame on the ones who left him."
Another person wrote: "How could anyone do this. Well done guys for a brilliant rescue."
While another TikTok user added: "Chow chows by nature aren't great at trusting people, that you gave him the time to trust you is beautiful."
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