Dog left for dead in a filthy cage receives a new life and looks unrecognizable

The Austin, Texas Police Department's Animal Cruelty Division was met with a horrendous sight one day on November 2016.

The officers received a call informing them about a dead dog at a busy intersection close to downtown Austin. The animal was left in a small crate all alone.

According to the Huffington Post, when the cruelty officers arrived, they saw the dog exactly as described, plus covered in feces.

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The dog showed severe emaciation, with her ribs and bones protruding from her mid-section.

Upon looking closer, an officer named Ewa Wagner believed she noticed the movement of the dog's rib cage.

"We realized she was alive, but just barely, so we rushed her to the Austin Animal Center where vets began emergency treatment."

She continued:

"Her temperature was too low to even register on a thermometer and she wasn't moving at all. We didn't think there was any way she would survive."

Regardless, they named her Sophie. The poor dog was roughly a year old and weighed 9.5 pounds.

Veterinary Technician Elizabeth Mancera did her best to comfort the dog as she lay on her exam table that day:

"I talked to her the whole time and even though she couldn't move her body, she looked up at me with pleading eyes. I kept telling her she would be okay."

Mancera then worked to bring up Sophie's temperature using a blow dryer on a warm setting. After two hours, it finally went up.

That very night, Mancera was allowed to take Sophie in as a foster. She gave her round-the-clock care.

First unable to walk or stand, Sophie began to show a change by day four when she got up. She was determined, and she had Mancera right by her side every step of the way.

Week by week, Sophie got stronger and stronger. She now had the support of a loving family behind her. Her weight tripled from when they first found her.

Mancera said it was around Thanksgiving that she knew Sophie would be hers permanently when she saw her playing with her other dog.

She now sometimes accompanies the police department who rescued her to work. She also assists in teaching others about animal cruelty.

The officers were so touched by Sophie's revival story, they offered anyone with information relating to her abandonment a $5,000 reward.

Sophone now enjoys car rides and visits to the animal shelter to see her friends.

"She'll never miss another meal and she'll never be cold again," promises Mancera. "That I am sure of."

Back in September 2018, a couple was faced with a similar dilemma when a stray dog collapsed in front of their home.

Beatriz Baranski Kaniak had just moved with her family to a new location. Construction was still going on so their gates were open.

One day, they noticed a black dog laying in their front driveway. They explained:

“Although we didn't know anything about her personality, health and social behavior, it wasn't a difficult decision. She seemed so fragile and in desperate need of someone to take care of her.”

The couple was already parents to four rescue dogs, so the decision was made easy.

They named their new pet Cookie and took care of her with a trip to the vet right away.

Before long, Cookie was nursed back to health and made into a happy pup as she should have been from the very start.