The staff at Stray Rescue of St. Louis (SRSL) are used to caring for scared, nervous pets. Most of the animals they rescue are found on the street, and it usually takes a while for them to warm up to their new caregivers. But recently, the team took in a “deathly”
skinny pup named Valkyrie, and her reaction to receiving her first kiss shocked them all.
When the team first met Valkyrie, they instantly noticed how skinny the brown pit bull was. At her age, she should’ve weighed around 50 pounds. But when they placed her on the scale, they were shocked to see that she only weighed 33 pounds.
“She’s so skinny that you can see all of her ribs, her hip bones … her skull is even sunken in by her eyes,” SRSL wrote on Facebook.
The team had no idea what Valyrie’s backstory was or how long she’d been surviving on her own. But as she started getting sick to her stomach in the exam room, they realized that she hadn’t had a real meal in a long time.
“When she arrived, she was throwing up garbage, pieces of plastic … she was eating anything she could find on the streets to try to find some calories,” SRSL wrote. “It is clear that no one has cared for her or about her in a very long time.”
In addition to being dangerously skinny, Valkyrie was covered in fleas and had overgrown toenails and a mammary mass. The poor girl was in rough shape physically, and she was completely shut down emotionally — until SRSL’s resident veterinarian, Dr. Ortiz, came along and planted a gentle kiss on her nose.
“She was unsure of us [at] first, but started to lean into affection in no time at all,” SRSL wrote. “She craves it.”
Valkyrie closed her eyes and breathed a deep sigh of relief as Dr. Ortiz kissed her snout. The sweet girl had been in survival mode for so long; she couldn’t believe someone was finally showing her love. And even though she was terrified when rescued, she quickly learned she was safe at SRSL.
It’s been a few days since Valkyrie started her treatment plan, and she’s thankfully feeling better already. She still has a while to go before reaching her weight goal, but she’s officially healthy enough to go into foster care. And her friends at SRSL can’t wait to see her thrive in a warm, loving home.
After caring for hundreds of dogs, Valkyrie has left a lasting impression on the SRSL crew.
“You might think working in rescue day after day would desensitize [us], but every soul we meet is so unique and special,” SRSL wrote on Facebook.
You can read more about Valkyrie’s rescue here:
Now that she’s feeling better, the SRSL team is focused on finding her a foster family and, eventually, a forever home. After everything Valkyrie went through leading up to her rescue, the SRSL team is confident that the best is yet to come for the affectionate girl.
“We’re so thankful she found her way to us,” SRSL wrote.
