Mocha

This is the story of our sweet, little Mocha. Many of you already know her from the news, but I thought I would tell her entire story to all of you.

Chain of Hope has helped a dog named Cuddles for quite some time. We finally received a donated dog run and Judy and a couple of friends were putting up the run one Sunday afternoon in Cuddles’s back yard. Erica and I were doing outreach out south. so we decided to stop by in the late afternoon and see how the dog run was coming along. When we got there, it  was almost finished.  Cuddles’s owner won’t leave him out there 24/7, but her yard is not fenced and this was going to help her out a lot on nice days when Cuddles could enjoy being outside, but be safe. Rita is in hospice care and loves this dog! (See previous blog about Cuddles:  https://chainofhope.wordpress.com/2013/02/08/rita-and-cuddles/).

Judy  told me to look in the back yard of the neighbor and check out the pit bull that was back there. I saw a brown pit bull chained to the fence with no food and no water. It was laying down, but it looked thin. There was no shelter. We had never noticed a dog back there before. We weren’t in Cuddles’s back yard very often-he came out front to potty and was mostly in the house. But we had never seen a dog there or heard one barking. I told Judy that I should go to the door, but she didn’t feel it was safe. She said when they first got there, the dog was barking at them a lot and the guy would lean out the back door and scream at her to shut up. She didn’t think he’d be receptive. We tossed the dog some milk bones and a rawhide and I snapped some pictures.

We decided that we would get this into animal control, but we did not want to call immediately after being next door.  We did not want the guy to think that it was us that called him in-we had to think about our safety and our ability to continue  helping Cuddles and Rita.  We let a few days go by and I called a supervisor. He sent an officer over there and they impounded the dog. The supervisor told me that the dog was barely able to stand up.

Oh My God! We could tell she was skinny when we were there the week before, but she was totally emaciated. The next day, we went to the shelter to see her.

This poor little girl was in bad shape. She was very weak when she came into the shelter. She would be available in 5 days if we could pull her out of there. Kansas City Pet Project did a good job with her. When we went back 5 days later to get her, she had a lot more energy already and was starting to feel better. We took her back to Chain of Hope and hugged her and told her that she was a Chain of Hope dog now! She looked so worried and scared  but I told her that she didn’t have to worry about anything anymore-we’ll do all of the worrying for her now! We will figure out all of her medical needs and where she was going to go (foster care, etc.) -all she needed to do is to get stronger and healthier!!!

Mocha got her name because when we loaded her up, she tried to drink Judy’s Mocha Frappuccino so Judy gave in!

Mocha had been through a lot and she was tuckered out after leaving the shelter.  I’m sure she was wondering where she was going now. We told her it was all good!!!

We got Mocha back to Chain of Hope and got her settled in. She was tired and hungry!

No more tears and sadness, Mocha! You are much loved!

Mocha is doing great! Many, many thanks to those of you that sent donations, prayers and good vibes Mocha’s way. She is a happy girl! She plays well with other dogs and is just a joyful, thankful dog! All she needs now is a foster home or an adoptive home! Mocha says, “please give me a chance!”. She is beautiful and so sweet!

We must always remember how many “Mochas” are out there.  Mocha was fortunate that Chain of Hope found her and animal control responded quickly and got her out of there. Unfortunately, there are many, many dogs like Mocha, still waiting to be found. That’s why it is crucial that we are out there 6 days a week, boots-on-the-ground, knocking on doors and driving alleys. It’s $100 to fill each van with gas and we often have two vans out, but that is the only way that we find these babies.  Our work is often difficult and depressing, but we cling to the good stories, like Mocha’s! What a beautiful spirit she has!

Is Mocha the skinniest dog I’ve ever seen? Unfortunately no, because I’ve seen dogs still on their chains dead from starvation. But Mocha made it!!! She suffered terribly and yet she survived. We are all thrilled! It is our privilege to watch her blossom and gain weight and run around the play yard playing with the other dogs with that huge smile on her face! For those of us fighting the good fight for the pitties-just keep on keepin’ on-they need all of us.  When we are exhausted and discouraged, we can always think of Mocha and just keep pushing on.

Our supporters have our sincere appreciation for keeping us out there. Mocha thanks you, too!