A woman who fostered an abused puppy revealed details about how the rescue dog overcame trauma after hiding in the closet for days. The puppy, named Lenny, was in a terrifying condition before the woman decided to bring him home. Initially, Lenny spent time inside the woman’s closet, but her love and care helped the puppy overcome his struggles.
Puppy rescued from euthanasia list heals from trauma in foster care
Kelly Williams runs the non-profit organization Kelaroo’s Ruff Ranch, which works towards rescuing abused and abandoned dogs in Texas. Williams shared the story of rescue puppy Lenny with Newsweek and recalled the time when she received a call that a canine needed help. At that point, Lenny had only recently arrived at the shelter over concerns of animal cruelty by the former owner.
Williams recalled how Lenny was so scared that he couldn’t eat and was trembling in his kennel. She said, “He had been pulled from the euthanasia list at BARC, a high-kill shelter in Houston, and hadn’t eaten for days. It broke my heart to see him like that, and I knew I had to do something.” She eventually brought him home. Even though Williams was confident about giving Lenny a healing environment, the process wasn’t easy.
Williams shared a video on TikTok about Lenny’s story, which soon went viral. The puppy spent the first four days hiding out in a closet. The foster carer told Newsweek that Lenny wouldn’t come out but would let her cuddle him inside the closet. She continued, “He had no trust in humans or sounds, and given that he was just a pup who had only known abuse and unpredictable punishment, it was natural for him to retreat to a place where he felt safe.”
The puppy initially found comfort inside the closet. This made Williams realize that Lenny needed time. Given the carer’s experience with troubled dogs before, she tended to the puppy patiently. Williams told the outlet that she would sing to him, bring him rotisserie chicken, and maintain a routine. She also gave Lenny lots of cuddles. One morning, she made a breakthrough after Lenny gradually began coming out of the closet.
Soon, the rescue puppy became comfortable and interacted with Williams. She recalled how he would sit in her lap and she would “sing him lullabies and rock him, and he would just melt.” Moreover, after she would finish her lullabies, she would get “silly,” after which she treated him with zoomies. Eventually, Lenny found a way to play with the other dogs. In the end, a loving Colorado family adopted Lenny, and the puppy is now growing up with “plenty of love, attention and exercise.”
