Every puppy deserves to grow up in a loving home, surrounded by kindness and care.
Sadly, many dogs instead experience neglect and cruelty from those who should protect them.
Lotte, a five-month-old pup, was one of those unfortunate souls. Her early days were marked by pain rather than comfort, and instead of a joyful puppyhood, she endured mistreatment and hunger.
Yet, despite everything, she never lost hope. Weak and desperate, Lotte used the last of her strength to crawl onto a woman’s porch in Texas, praying someone would finally help her.
A Compassionate Stranger Offers Hope
When the woman spotted the frail puppy on her porch, her heart broke. The poor dog, later named Lotte, was skeletal, her body ravaged by mange and exhaustion.
The woman gently offered food, but Lotte was too weak even to eat.
Fearing she might not survive, the woman quickly took her to Austin Pets Alive!.
It was 6 a.m. when she arrived and encountered Rene, one of the volunteers. She begged him to take the suffering dog under their care.
Rene was deeply moved by what he saw.
“Starved. Covered in mange. And marks around her mouth that look hauntingly like it had been taped shut or potentially muzzled for an excessive amount of time,“ the Austin shelter wrote in a Facebook post.
Although Austin Pets Alive is not an intake shelter, the woman refused to leave without help for Lotte.
Rene knelt beside the trembling pup and extended his hand to reassure her. She seemed to recognize that she was finally safe, and her tense body slowly relaxed as she leaned into his touch.
Safety After Suffering
Rene placed Lotte in a kennel and made sure she was warm and comfortable before speaking to the shelter team about her situation.
The staff was heartbroken by her condition. While they didn’t know every detail of her past, the evidence of prolonged neglect was unmistakable.
“It is hard to know the full picture of her history, but we believe—because of the time it takes for mange to worsen, emaciation to occur, and her reluctance to eat—that she was neglected or abused,” Luis Sanchez, the director of public relations and communications at Austin Pets Alive, said in an interview.
They believe Lotte had finally escaped her abusers and collapsed on that porch, seeking a final act of mercy.
The medical team immediately began treating her mange and provided the round-the-clock care she needed.
On The Road To Recovery
The shelter staff poured their hearts into helping Lotte heal and move beyond her painful past.
Despite everything she had endured, she continued to show a gentle and trusting spirit, greeting her caregivers with quiet gratitude.
Little by little, Lotte began to recover. Her fur started to grow back, her appetite returned, and her energy slowly increased.
Though she still has a long road ahead, she is finally surrounded by people who see her worth.
Once her medical treatment is complete, Lotte will be ready to move into a foster or permanent home where she can experience what every dog deserves—a life filled with love and safety.
Thanks to one caring stranger and a devoted rescue team, Lotte’s story has transformed from heartbreak to hope.
