Loving owners and a new best friend
A DOG who was cruelly stuffed into a black bin bag and thrown over a bridge has been rescued and rehomed.
Petal, a terrier cross, was saved when a dog warden contacted the Dogs Trust who took her into their re-homing centre in Harefield.
Richard Moore, manager of the centre, said: “Petal is one of those horror stories. She was handed to the dog warden after reportedly being thrown from a bridge in a bin bag, and the dog warden contacted us
“She was immediately placed in foster care with one of our amazing canine carers who has provided her with all the love and patience she needs.”
Steven and Valerie Macdougall, who took Petal in last winter, immediately fell in love with her.
Steven, who has worked as a canine carer for seven years, said: “Petal came into the centre two days after we lost our cocker spaniel Ollie and as soon as I heard about her, I went straight to see her.
“I’ve never seen a dog so traumatised. I had this overwhelming feeling that she was meant to come home with me, almost like Ollie stepped aside to make space for her. She’s absolutely tiny - the size of a cat - but is actually about seven or eight years old.”
The pair decided they simply couldn’t part with Petal so decided to adopt her, giving her the happy ever after she was looking for.
Steven said: “We’ve seen such a lot of improvement, but it was extremely slow going until recently. She would only play when we weren’t in the room – we set up hidden cameras to watch her. She had shown us that she really liked to be around other dogs – much more than people – so after a long time waiting for the right match, we fostered another Dogs Trust dog, Penny.
“We bonded as soon as we met on the intake block, and I just knew she was the missing piece of the jigsaw in Petal’s rehabilitation. They clicked so quickly we’ve now adopted Penny too.”
Petal and Penny are now inseparable, and with her new friend’s help Petal is quickly gaining confidence.
“It’s awful to imagine what she must have gone through. Seeing her as she is now, playing with Penny - it’s the happy ever after I was hoping for,” Steven said.