With a big black and white dog, it’s not easy to hide, but two-year-old Fico had no choice. He was abandoned in the woods, unsure of his surroundings, curled up under a carpet of weeds hoping someone would find him.
Luckily, a nice person passing through the thicket found the dog at the right time and contacted the staff at the Lost Animal Rescue Center. Donna Lochmann, SRSL’s rescue manager, said: „I’m so grateful someone found the dog in time. But when we went back the next day, she was there, still in the bushes”.
During the first meeting, Fico did not know what to think of the person who had helped her. She had been on her own for a while and was apparently in survival mode, but she still didn’t know if she could trust Lokman. Then the frightened dog got up and started growling at Lokman. At that moment, Lokman sensed something was wrong.
I realized he wasn’t using his right front leg,” Lokman said. In addition to his wounds, Figo was surrounded by thick piles of leaves and tangled vines. Lochman realized that trying to catch the dog by wrapping a slippery rope around its neck wasn’t the best solution, so he tried another method.
„I thought it would be easier to set a trap and see if she would go in.“ Lokman said. So I took a bunch of fresh fried chicken and put it in one of the traps.” Although starving, the dog was also wary of the trap. When Mr. Lochman returned to check, he was surprised to find the chickens, and the traps, intact. However, the fico was already in the weeds. He had gone to a nearby abandoned house and was perched on the foundation.
Mr Lochman took further action to save the dog. Instead of trying to pick up Fico when she least expected it, the experienced rescuer decided to gain her trust with a soft, encouraging voice. „I knelt down where I could see her and tried to talk to her.“ Lokman said. This time she didn’t try to get up and run away.“ Rochman slowly approached her while talking to Figo. When Lokman finally approached the dog, he gently tossed the end of the leash towards Feeko and reassured her that everything was fine. You can listen to Lochman and Feeko speak here. I did it several times and said, ‚See, it’s the leash,‘ Rochman said. When Feeko didn’t respond to the lead, Rochman decided to put the lead on her head. To his surprise, the leash stayed on and the frightened dog barely reacted. “She almost died,” Lokman says. She must have been exhausted after being alone for so long.” After finally dropping off Fico, Lokman went straight to the vet. As well as having to have his shoulder amputated, he also tested positive for parvo.
According to Mr Lokman, the pup fell seriously ill the night he was picked up, but luckily he was able to be treated immediately. He hasn’t fully recovered yet, but he’s just started eating, so he’s on the road to recovery,” Mr Lokman said. There’s still a long way to go before Feeko finds a forever home, but this lucky pup is exactly where he needs to be for his recovery. With the care and love of the caregivers at SRSL, it is hoped that Feeko will make a full recovery. Team members like Lochman will be sad to say goodbye to Fico, but also happy that she finally has the life she deserves.
