Audray Luck felt a familiar knot form in her stomach as she drove along Georgia’s winding backroads toward Murphy Hollow Spring. As the founder of Luck’s Rescue, she knew the area all too well — it was a heartbreaking dumping ground for abandoned pets. Still, she hoped the call she’d received that day would end differently.
It didn’t.
As Luck rounded the corner, she saw exactly what the caller had described: two adult poodles, one black and one golden, lying calmly in the middle of the road, as if waiting for someone who had promised to return.
Luck pulled over immediately and grabbed her rescue gear, including food she hoped would earn their trust. She and a fellow rescuer tried to guide the dogs off the road, but the situation quickly became dangerous.
“They would eat out of our hands, but the moment we tried to leash them, they’d bolt,” Luck told The Dodo. “They were incredibly elusive.”
For hours, the rescuers stayed, trying every gentle approach they knew. Each attempt only sent the frightened dogs farther down the road.
As daylight faded, Luck made the painful decision to leave and return at first light. She drove away worried sick — especially about the black poodle, nearly invisible on the dark road to passing cars.
Her worst fear came true overnight.
When Luck returned the next morning, she found the black poodle had been struck by a vehicle. Even more devastating, her surviving sister had stayed beside her all night, refusing to leave.
“She didn’t move from her sister’s side,” Luck said. “It was absolutely heartbreaking.”
This time, Luck was determined not to leave again. Using all her rescue tools and patience, she eventually managed to guide the surviving poodle into a humane trap about an hour later.
“She was terrified and confused when we caught her,” Luck said. “But she was never going to suffer again.”
You can watch more footage from her rescue here:
The rescued poodle was taken straight to the vet, where she passed her exam with flying colors. She was named Princess Anastasia and placed into a foster home, where she was finally able to rest, feel safe, and begin healing from everything she’d lost.
Over the next few weeks, her personality slowly emerged. Surrounded by kindness and consistency, Princess Anastasia began to trust again.
While other abandoned poodles have sadly appeared at Murphy Hollow Spring since her rescue, Princess Anastasia will never return there.
She was recently adopted by her perfect family and now spends her days surrounded by love, comfort, and joy.
Though her rescuers wish her sister could have shared this happy ending, they take comfort in knowing that Princess Anastasia will never be left waiting again.
To support dogs like Princess Anastasia, donations can be made to Luck’s Rescue.
