I can’t understand what goes through the minds of people who abandon their dogs in deserted parking lots, expecting them to survive alone. My own thoughts were left in chaos after witnessing what happened to Phoenix.
This young German Shepherd never saw it coming.
She was discarded in a lonely Fresno, North California parking lot, treated as if she were nothing more than trash, something without worth.
In her panic, the little dog kept leaping at her owner’s vehicle, convinced it was just a game.
But it wasn’t. It was cruel. Phoenix soon realized the painful truth.
Left Behind In A Parking Lot
A white Nissan Sentra. Phoenix will never forget that car. It carried her into despair.
Security cameras at Country Living Mobile Home Park in Fresno, California, recorded the moment Phoenix was left behind. Her owner clearly showed no care for this beautiful black German Shepherd pup.
He never even gave her the chance to prove how remarkable her breed is. He simply arrived, opened the car door, pushed her out, and slammed it shut.
Did he look back to see Phoenix bewildered and searching for him? No.
Did he pause to check on her? No.
He simply sped away, fleeing from what he had done. Phoenix chased him. She kept circling the car, pleading for him to stop. But chasing the vehicle as it sped down the street was pointless. The man never stopped.
It was devastating, gut-wrenching, and unbearably cruel.
Phoenix had been abandoned.
From Betrayal To Breakthrough
Watching that car vanish was both the lowest and most fortunate moment of Phoenix’s life. Why? Because it marked the beginning of a better world for her.
Once she realized he was gone, Phoenix ran toward nearby trailer homes, where a worker managed to hold her until help came.
But the act of abandonment was not the worst part.
According to Daily Mail, the same man had been seen earlier that day wearing a red sweatshirt and holding a black GSD pup with a pink collar. He had tried to leave her at the Fresno Animal Shelter, but the facility was closed.
He had been searching for a way to rid himself of Phoenix, and when all else failed, he chose the cruelest option.
“I obviously had no idea he was going to abandon it just minutes later. He told me he had found the dog, and that it wasn’t his. I didn’t believe him,” a shelter worker who took the photo of Phoenix and her owner visiting the shelter said.
He attempted to deceive the worker, pretending the dog was a stray he had stumbled upon. But no stray would run after someone with such devotion. That was a lie.
Couldn’t he have waited until morning when the shelter opened?
Couldn’t he have sought another shelter willing to take her?
There is no excuse for what he did to this gentle soul.
Frustration surrounds Phoenix’s ordeal, but the focus now should be on the good. Phoenix is currently training to become a therapy dog. She is safe with a foster family and has a promising future. Though her path was rocky and painful, it led to a far better life.
Take that, ex-owner. Phoenix has the life she deserves, one you could never have given her.
Healing Others While Healing Herself
Phoenix’s future shines bright.
She eventually made it to Fresno Animal Shelter. With the help of Meredith Gintyig-Hayes and her organization, Regional Deployed K9 Inc. and Equine Rescue, Phoenix entered a foster program and now waits for her permanent home.
Even if adoption never comes, which is unlikely, Phoenix will remain with Meredith.
“Her true colors of being a wild child have begun to show through, she’s started to decompress from such a traumatic experience. Phoenix is fitting in well with the other dogs here and has begun to show confidence by beginning to explore our yard, which is about an acre, while the other fur babies are out playing,” said Meredith for Daily Mail.
When Meredith feels Phoenix is ready, she will begin service dog training. Phoenix shows tremendous potential, and Meredith is determined to shape her into the best service dog possible.
Phoenix is empathetic. She is kind and intuitive. She has endured more than most. She understands what those struggling with conditions like anxiety or PTSD feel.
Her story spread worldwide, leaving viewers in tears. It touched countless hearts. Now Phoenix is thriving.
Thank you, driver of the white Nissan Sentra, for discarding Phoenix.
You will face the penalty you deserve. The world has witnessed a canine treasure rise from your cruelty, a dog now called Phoenix who overcame abandonment and every person who ever thought of doing the same.