German shepherd mix rescued after surviving 7 months in the wilderness
It was a journey over miles of wilderness, rife with second chances and an egg sandwich or two.
Last January, Buddha Dog Rescue and Recovery was contacted by a woman named Lucy Evans. She said she spotted a dog running through I-84 in the Middletown area of New York. The dog was described as limping but still quick enough to evade capture.
Every time a team would go and take him, the dog simply squeezed under chain-link fences and runs off into the wilderness. Back in Washington D.C., however, a family waits patiently for their dog to be found.
This dog was not a stray.
His name is Teddy, a German shepherd mix who endured a life of trauma. His story began in California when in 2021, a family rescued him when he was scheduled to be euthanized. Della Monica and Rozhaja Doci took him under their care as Teddy reminded Doci of a dog she once loved.
“We had lost a family pet, and that was pretty traumatic,” Monica said to Daily Paws.
“That grief certainly played its part, but Teddy also reminded [Doci] of her childhood dog.”
The journey was difficult, however. Teddy was deemed to be severely traumatized to the point that he has become socially anxious. Still, the couple insisted to give him a loving home.
All the way from California, the couple drove back to Washington D.C. with Teddy.
“After we brought him home and started all of the rehab for him, we had him evaluated by a behavioral therapist,” Della Monica said to Daily Paws. “She said that he was probably always a backyard dog or even a stray, so he didn’t have much in the way of social skills.”
Vet bills began stacking up, days demanded more patience, but in the end, Teddy slowly opened up to them. It was then that they decided to take Teddy on a trip.
The couple visited their family in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.
Hoping that Teddy was slowly becoming more comfortable, the couple was not ready for what happened next.
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“He was leashed,” Monica said to Daily Paws. “He was having a good time. We were playing. I foolishly let him off the leash, he saw an opening, and took off.”
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Teddy bolted through a gap in the fenced backyard and was never seen again.
The heartbroken couple kept their hopes up for as much as they could but as days turned to weeks, and weeks turned to months, the chances became bleak.
Then, a person called a dog rescue organization in New York, 80 miles from where Teddy ran away.
Their team quickly responded to the last place Teddy was sighted. After spotting his tracks and finding him inside a barn, the team set out a trap. Much like how the state troopers lured him with egg sandwiches, the rescue team give him a whole chicken.
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After he took the bait, Teddy was quickly taken to a local animal hospital where he was scanned. Fortunately, there was a blip – and the blip lead to a microchip.
That was when they learned Teddy’s identity.
The rescue organization coordinated with the couple who burst into tears when they learned the news. It was a journey that lasted seven months and spanned over 80 miles.
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Teddy’s recovery is still ongoing. In the meantime, the family made an Instagram account for him so people can get updates.
Watch how this dog found his way back home after 7 months in the wilderness.
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Source: YouTube – WETM 18 News, Facebook – Buddha Dog Rescue & Recovery, Instagram – teddy_the_miracle_dog, Daily Paws, Newsweek