Get your tissues ready, this story is going to make you misty. And if you don’t get a little misty, then check your pulse. The story of Pharaoh is nothing short of remarkable and will warm your heart. I’m so thankful for selfless humans who deeply care for the well being of animals, especially when those animals are extraordinary.
Earlier this year, Hope for Paws, a Los Angeles rescue group, caught word that there was a stray dog hanging around a neighborhood. But this wasn’t any stray dog, he is a senior dog, and he is completely blind. And he’s been homeless for ten years. Ten years!
Now just pause for a second and wrap your mind around that.
Blind. Alone. Afraid, and surviving.
Of course, Hope for Paws wanted to rescue Pharaoh as soon as possible. They wanted to give him what little chance he had left to live out his last years surrounded by love, safety, and food. Lots and lots of food!
But catching him would be no easy task. In this video, you can see that Pharaoh was really scared of humans. He was also quite hungry. It took a while for rescuers to capture him and when they did, he was absolutely terrified. And respectfully so, the poor guy is blind and has been on his own for so long.
Imagine minding your own business, starving, when all of a sudden a human comes along and starts feeding you. You’re already totally sketched out by people, but you take the food anyway. Then suddenly you’re captured! This must have been such a traumatic experience for him. But in the end, the stress was worth it.
Pharaoh is being cared for and is now living at Frosted Faces Foundation, a foster home for in between forever home pets. They are working with him tirelessly to help him adjust to a world where humans can be trusted, a world where he receives love and does not have to fear for his life.
A recent update from the Frosted Faces Foundation Facebook page stated,
“Pharaoh used to shake and hide in a corner for hours, peeing when trying to be interacted with. He wouldn’t eat unless we left a bowl of food out at night when he was alone in the dark.
Pharaoh now recognizes the sound of my voice and follows it. The leash still makes him mildly uncomfortable, but we are working on it! He climbs up onto the couch, goes potty with his friends in the yard, and knows how to find the open sliding glass door to come inside. He eats twice each day at mealtimes with the lights on and us in the room. We will find him spontaneously getting up and switching beds and as of this weekend, getting up to walk to the water bowl!”
Now Pharaoh will be living his happily ever after. He’ll be treated like a king as he lives out the rest of his senior years, all thanks to the great people of Hope for Paws and Frosted Faces Foundation.
If you ever see a stray dog, make the call. Don’t just be a passerby. There are so many others before you who think that the next car or pedestrian will make the call, and no one ever sends help. It takes just a few moments of compassion to change an animal’s life forever.
