Ah, the early days of spring!
Nature begins to stir again, slowly awakening as each day passes. Before long, the days grow longer, warmer, and full of anticipation.
Spring breathes life into everything—plants, animals, and even people.
The first flowers of the season, brave and determined, start to appear beneath the last bits of melting snow.
But what’s that?
Another patch of snow?
Wait, no… that looks more like a flower, for sure.
Yet flowers don’t look back at you.
They don’t shiver in the cold.
And they certainly don’t plead for help.
That morning brought an unexpected encounter for a woman in Malvern, Pennsylvania.
Karen started the day unaware she was about to discover something unusual.
Was That Really A Flower?
It felt like it would be just another ordinary morning.
A quiet cup of coffee, a slow start to the day, mentally reviewing her to-do list.
Karen thought everything was going according to plan.
Then she noticed something unusual in one of her bare flower beds.
It clearly wasn’t a flower. Not this early in the season.
But when she moved closer, she realized the visitor was looking right into her eyes.
A stray dog, trembling and chilled from the crisp March air, had curled up there.
Karen hurried out with a blanket to warm the cold pup and brought a bowl of chicken soup. The dog was soaked and covered in dirt, and Karen knew she needed more help than she could give alone.
She called Nicole Asher of Buddha Dog Rescue & Recovery for assistance. Asher told her to continue offering food to make the dog feel more secure. No rushing, no sudden attempts to catch her.
The dog had to feel safe before anyone could approach.
“Karen calmly and quietly putting out food and leaving her be allowed [the dog] to feel comfortable enough to return.”, said Asher.
Their hope was that the nervous dog would eventually step into the crate Asher brought.
And she did not disappoint!
The pup soon walked right into the crate, and the women quickly transported her to Buddha Rescue to scan for a microchip.
As it turned out, she had one.
They discovered she was part of a foster program through MatchDog Rescue. Her name was Ella, and she had gone missing two weeks earlier. What amazed everyone was that her foster home was 12 miles away.
Ella had walked all that distance to end up in Karen’s garden in Malvern.
“We were beyond thrilled,” Asher wrote. “I immediately contacted the number, and after they got over the initial shock, there were lots of happy tears and cries of joy. The president of the rescue came and took her back to her home to decompress and rest from her traumatic time on the run. She settled right in and has become a big couch potato.”
Ella is now thriving. From a lost pup hiding under a bush just after giving birth to a relaxed, loved companion, she’s been through a lot.
Now, she finally gets to rest, recharge, and enjoy all the good things life has in store.