A group of friends was filming in the middle of the desert when they suddenly spotted a stray dog wandering nearby.
“There wasn’t a single house around,” said Emily Everett-Nelson, founder of Atlas Animal Rescue, in a video for The Dodo. “Just miles and miles of nothing.”
No one knew where the dog had come from or how she ended up there. She was friendly and happy, walking around the set as if she had always belonged. The friends gave her some attention and carried on, but a few days later, they heard faint cries coming from nearby.
The desert nights were freezing, and they knew the dog, later named Pretzel, needed help. They reached out to Everett-Nelson, who immediately rushed to the scene.
“I found an old abandoned ramp, and she had given birth underneath it,” Everett-Nelson said. “She was there with nearly a dozen puppies.”
Despite being exhausted, Pretzel trusted her rescuer completely. She let Everett-Nelson pick up each of her ten tiny puppies and gently place them in a kennel. It was clear she was doing her best to care for them, but she was malnourished and struggling to produce enough milk.
That’s when Everett-Nelson had an idea.
A friend of hers had a dog named Louise, who had also recently given birth to ten puppies. Hoping Louise could help, they introduced Pretzel and her little ones to the new family. It worked perfectly—Louise had plenty of milk, and soon, all the puppies were thriving.
“She had more than enough milk for everyone,” Everett-Nelson said. “Once Louise started feeding them, they grew big and strong in no time.”
After eight weeks in their foster home, Pretzel and her puppies were finally ready for adoption. The puppies all found homes quickly, but the biggest surprise was how many people wanted to adopt Pretzel herself.
“Everyone wanted Pretzel because she’s just an incredible dog,” Everett-Nelson said. “Some dogs just have these old souls that touch your heart.”
Pretzel is now living her best life in her forever home—proving that she trusted the right people at just the right time.
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