Animal lovers' hearts have been warmed by seeing a terrified dog slowly opening up to her rescuers and their gentle golden retriever.
JJ, 28, a YouTuber living in London, in the U.K., regularly shares videos of animals in need that he has taken into his home, telling Newsweek: "We have rescued 22 dogs so far, and we only started doing it in July 2024."
Teaming up with multiple shelters, JJ takes in foster dogs, helping to build up their confidence and security by showing them love and compassion, and introducing them to his own two dogs: golden retriever Kobe, and Doberman Moki.
The foster carer recently shared the story of Luna to his YouTube account, @thegoldenkobefamily, saying they have "never had a rescue this scared before." Luna had been through a lot in her life, with JJ saying she had previously been mistreated in a shelter, where she was starving and tried to eat rocks to survive.
![Luna](https://d.newsweek.com/en/full/2582601/luna.png?w=1200&f=e669ef6040ac0a59cd4936c845282e28)
Luna "spent three days in the back of a van" as local rescue Happy Shelter transported her to the U.K. from where she was rescued in North Macedonia, he said.
The video showed the terrified dog having to be carried from the van to the car, and initially refusing to go into the house as she was "frozen in fear" and had not been inside a home for "years."
"It was a very slow transformation with her, we honestly didn't think we would ever be able to walk her because she was so timid and shy," JJ said.
But they were patient, and gave Luna the time and space to "come out of her shell in her own time" — and slowly, "we could see she was starting to change."
"I had the biggest grin on my face. I feel like a proud parent," JJ said.
The video, shared on January 16 and viewed over 4 million times, also showed the moment Luna was introduced to JJ's "gentle" dog, golden retriever Kobe.
JJ explained to Newsweek: "Kobe is really good with the rescues, he's very understanding and really good at giving them space when they need it, he's also a super happy dog, so I'm sure it gives comfort to the rescues to see him how he is."
And this was certainly the case for Luna, as when Kobe walked into the room, she immediately turned and walked up to him curiously.
The pair sniffed at each other, Kobe's tail wagging furiously, and while she took several breaks, walking away from Kobe, they gave her space and allowed her to keep settling in.
Then it was time for her to meet JJ's "overly-excited mini-horse," Moki the Doberman.
JJ said: "Moki is also really good with the rescues, she may get a bit too excited at first, but she's the most loveable, friendly giant, all she wants to do is play and cuddle up with the rescues. They make a really good team to help out when we foster dogs."
When Luna met Moki, she appeared interested, but slightly overwhelmed, and they kept giving Luna breaks, taking Moki away so she could get used to her from a distance.
He said in the video that the three dogs didn't all immediately become "best friends," but "that's fine — as long as there are no fights, it's a good start."
They began leash training, and introducing Luna to her crate with plenty of positive reinforcement, and before long Luna was showing sweet affection to her foster carers.
It's a long road for Luna, who had been used to living with 80 other dogs, sleeping outside, and was suffering from separation anxiety, which they immediately began treating by leaving for short amounts of time before returning, teaching her they would always return.
![Luna](https://d.newsweek.com/en/full/2582603/luna.png?w=1200&f=c90fc4780617562c9e1d0c441aa7134c)
Luna also required training and assurance to become comfortable on a leash, as they carefully brought her on her first walk "in years."
"We didn't want to push her," JJ said in the video. "She's already been through so much and is making amazing progress."
And he told Newsweek: "The plan for Luna going forward is to continue her transformation," with an upcoming video to showcase her being socialized with trips to the dog park, pet store and busy areas.
"We want her to become a confident dog, and a loved one," he said, before Luna goes to her forever home.
"The rescue we work with vets everyone who applies for the dogs, they have to fill in a form, they get a home check, and then get interviewed to make sure they're the right fit.
"Luna is around seven years old, so there isn't as much interest as there would be for a younger dog, but we're more than happy to keep Luna and continue with her rehabilitation until she finds the perfect home," he said.
Animal lovers flocked to the YouTube video, with one saying it "broke my heart," and another admitting it "brings tears to my eyes because after all she's been through, she's still willing to take a chance and give her trust again."
And as one put it: "How could anyone mistreat such angels? Thank you for helping them. You guys are the real ones."
In the United States, around 6.3 million animals enter shelters each year, including 3.1 million dogs, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). But thanks to the work of shelters, rescues and adopters, around 4.1 million animals are adopted annually, including 2 million dogs.
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