While stopping for gas near the Grand Canyon, Zach Lacher noticed something unusual — a scruffy white dog darting past, clutching a Starbucks bag in her mouth.
She looked thin, tired, and desperate, clearly surviving off whatever scraps she could steal.
“I later found out she’d been out there for about three months,” Lacher told The Dodo. “Local authorities had been trying to catch her, but she was too skittish. She wasn’t going to let anyone just walk up and grab her.”
Something about the stray tugged at his heart. Lacher decided to come back later that day to look for her again. He didn’t realize that what began as a quick stakeout would turn into days of effort.
Each morning, the pup — eventually named Haseya — emerged from the canyon, scavenging before retreating again. Lacher patiently tracked her movements for several days. But when she failed to appear on the fifth morning, worry set in.
Afraid she might be trapped or injured, Lacher launched a drone into the canyon. “I flew it for about an hour, checking every nook and cranny, when I spotted her big, fluffy white tail,” he said.
To his surprise, Haseya began following the drone — almost as if she trusted it. The little tail led her right back toward where Lacher was waiting with food.
Even then, she stayed just out of reach. Realizing she was exhausted but still cautious, Lacher set up a humane trap. Not long after, Haseya finally stepped inside.
“She was like, ‘I can’t do this anymore,’” Lacher said. “When the trap closed, she just lay down, almost at peace with it.”
After months of surviving alone, Haseya seemed relieved to be safe. Lacher brought her home, where she surprised him by immediately bonding with his cat. It was as if she knew she had finally found her place.
Now, instead of scrounging for leftovers, Haseya spends her days soaking up love, naps, and companionship. She adapted quickly to family life — and she isn’t looking back.
“She was so strong to survive out there on her own,” Lacher said. “But now she finally gets to just be happy.”
