Lisa Chiarelli is a volunteer rescuer associated with a Sun Valley-based nonprofit animal charity group called Frankie, Lola, and Friends.
One rainy day, while she was on her way to work, she drove by an industrial lot used by a recycling company. It was a huge property with tons of discarded recyclable materials. Foraging around the trash was a large black pit bull.
The kind rescuer stopped her car and tried to see if she could get the dog to come near her. But like most homeless dogs, she was scared of humans and quickly bolted away. Lisa got back in her vehicle and drove around the property. But she wasn’t able to find her again.
Slowly
Lisa returned the next day and found the dog in the same spot she saw her first. This time, she parked further away and slowly walked towards the dog. She then threw some food at her from a distance. Seeing no threat, the dog ate the food.
The rescuer decided to take her time. She didn’t want to spook the poor stray. So she came back every day and tried to gain the dog’s trust by feeding her. Lisa was able to shorten their distance each day. After two weeks, the dog was eating from her hand.
In the third week, she was able to catch her using a trap.
A loving family
Lisa took the dog back to their facility, where she was cleaned up and given a medical exam. Thankfully, she was healthy and well-fed, indicating that there was a chance that she was abandoned by her owners. They then scanned her for a microchip but found none. They called her Xena.
Lisa worked with Xena every day, trying to ease her fears away. It took her three days before she got the first tail wag from the dog. In two weeks, the two of them were like best friends. The transformation in the dog’s behavior was astonishing. This meant she was ready to be adopted.
A short time after that, a loving family from Los Angeles adopted her.
Source: The Dodo via Youtube