Family moved and left dog alone in the cold so he built a refuge from their trash

A family abandoned their dog in the streets and didn’t care about the low temperatures he would face. The smart animal, however, found refuge in the family’s trash, snuggling in between some boxes until he was rescued and taken to a foster home.

Five days before Christmas, Terri Looby got a call about a “small dog” wandering around the street of a neighborhood in Detroit, Michigan. The temperature was dropping, and the floor was covered in snow, so the person wanted someone to help their dog and, hopefully, find its owner.

As part of the volunteer team of the Detroit Animal Welfare Group (DAWG), Looby couldn’t sit around and do nothing, so she drove around the streets when the dog was seen and took a co-worker with her.

FINDING THE DOG

At first, the women didn’t see any dog, but soon after the noticed a dog, that was not small, resting among a pile of trash in a curb. “There were some boxes, trash bags and a chair sitting at the curb for pickup day," Looby told The Dodo. "As we passed the trash, I noticed that there was a dog curled up in the tightest little ball possible.”

The dog, a pit bull mix, got happy when he saw Looby approaching him. She recalled the moment:

“I said, 'Hi baby, it's OK. Come see me.' His tail was wagging, and he jumped off the chair and started limping toward me. He knew he was safe!"

The woman lured the pup into her car by talking to him in a soothing voice, and as the dog finally got comfy into her back seat, she offered him a chicken patty she had for him.

STARTING A NEW LIFE

Since the dog didn’t have a plaque, they called him Ollie-Loo. As they were pulling out of the street, a neighbor that had witnessed the incident asked what they were going to do with the dog, and after Looby assured the woman the dog would be safe, she told them his sad story.

The dog’s owners were kicked out of their house by the landlord. They also had a small dog. The family did return at some point but only took the little dog with them, leaving the lovely pitbull mix behind in the cold with the rest of their unwanted belongings.

After taking Ollie-Loo to the vet, they discovered he had a broken femur and was emaciated. “They'll put a plate in to connect it together," said Looby. And while waiting for the surgery, the happy dog enjoyed the warmth and love of his foster home.

“Ollie-Loo has been a very sweet, happy, tail-wagging puppy who just wants a family to love him and not toss him out like he is trash,” stated Looby.

ANOTHER SAD CASE OF ABANDONMENT, WITH A HAPPY ENDING

Some humans seem to think that their pets are just toys and they don’t realize the depth of the dogs’ feelings. Like one family that, after discovering they were having a baby, decided to get rid of their dog.

Fortunately for the adorable dachshund, Nicki Fricker was in the parking lot of the Jefferson County SPCA in New York at the same time her owner was about to leave her in the shelter.

Fricker was about to leave a stray dog he had found in the shelter, and when he noticed the man, he asked if he was doing the same. “He said no,” Fricker told The Dodo. “He's giving her up because his wife is about to have a baby. Then he asked if I wanted her.”

Despite having two other dogs at home, Fricker couldn’t leave the nervous looking dog in such a noisy and stressful environment, because she knew the dog wouldn’t do well on it. Originally named Dotty, the dog was renamed as Molly and is now in a happy and loving family.