It was a casual morning for Donna Lochmann, with a new rescue task on her schedule – a part of the job with a lot of dangers behind the corners – but one that she worked with her full heart and passion. 

“A dog awaits and needs our help!” said this experienced Stray Rescue of St.Louis rescuer after an emergency call for medical intervention.

Her coworker, Natalie Thompson, immediately jumped into the passenger seat with the same passion and pride that another puppy would be saved.

Little did they know that a much bigger journey awaited them on the streets of St.Louis.

An Unexpected Change Of Plans 

While Donna was speeding up so that they could get to their destination on time, Natalie suddenly jerked and shouted at Donna to slow down.

Source: The Dodo

“I just saw something small and brown hanging out on a side street,” said Donna to a surprised Natalie. “It might be another dog that needs our help” she continued.

Indeed, that was a puppy and Natalie confirmed it. But, as she later stated in one interview, reason still prevailed, though deciding it was wiser to go back and look for him after their primary mission.

The medical intervention was quick and successful, and everything was perfectly ready for the start of another rescue mission.

A Blanket Full Of Emotions

When they came to the “place of crime”, they immediately got out of the car to find their dog, but unfortunately, there was no sign of him.

“I was so devastated at that one moment” Natalie admitted later. But, as an experienced rescuer, her senses were really sharp, and she started looking in an alleyway. And, BOOM, there she was. A scared, skinny dog that was rushing in an unknown direction.

At that moment, Natalie lost sight of the dog, but immediately noticed her at the end of the alleyway, where she entered an abandoned multi-floor building.

Source: The Dodo

Natalie later admitted that it was one of the scariest places she had ever visited, but that just pumped up her motivation to rescue this poor puppy because no one deserves to be in a place like this.

Once she entered the building, she immediately noticed the stairs. They were really unstable, but what kind of person would she be if she hadn’t taken the chance?

Once she finally got to the second floor, her eyes were immediately filled with tears due to what she had witnessed. A little, skinny puppy in a blanket trying to get some warmth from the rough, cold place in which she was living.

Source: @strayrescuestl

A Proud Moment For Every Dog Rescuer

After this hard moment, Natalie didn’t wait for one more second, and immediately reached for her slip lead, but quickly realized she didn’t have it.

“I only had one slip lead with me, and it was on the dog in the Jeep,” Lochmann said.

When she came back from the Jeep with her most dependable rescue tool, her puppy wasn’t there. Fortunately, Natalie noticed another door on the second floor and she realized that the dog had gone out through that door.

And, yes – after breaking through the outskirts of the building, she found her sitting in an open field. She didn’t want to scare her, and she also didn’t know her personality.

Source: @strayrescuestl

But, hey – what could possibly go wrong if you offered some food to the dog? Vienna sausages did the trick and she immediately gained the pup’s trust.

Natalie named this little sweetie “Dodie” because she had such a cute doll face.

After that, it was really easy to put a leash around the dog and get her into the Jeep.
“In general, this is one of the hardest parts of the whole mission because some dogs are really afraid, but Dodie is truly one of a kind,” said Natalie.

Providing Her With The Life That She Really Deserves

After the successful rescue mission, the two brave rescuers brought her to the vet and, as expected for this amazing girl, she went through the test without a single moan. Way to go, girl!

Even her health was surprisingly good. The only problem was the fact that she was underweight.

Because of that, she was on a strict feeding schedule, with a very small portion several times throughout the day.

Up to this day, Dodie is safe in a foster home, wrapped in a truly warm and fuzzy blanket,  with the addition of true love from her foster mom, Nicolina, along with other loving people and volunteers from this amazing foster home.

Source: @strayrescuestl