When rescuers first found Dawn, a gentle pit bull, she was tied to a crate outside an abandoned home in Georgia — no food, no water, no shade. She was the only survivor of a heartbreaking cruelty case, barely holding on when help finally arrived.
By the time she reached Rockdale County Animal Shelter, Dawn was exhausted — body and soul. She didn’t know what would happen next, but all she wanted was a safe place to rest.
Unfortunately, the overcrowded shelter couldn’t promise her much time. Still, in those brief days, Dawn found something she hadn’t had in a long while — kindness.
“She stopped and hugged the volunteer,” recalled Rosa Fond, founder of Humans and Animals United (HAAU). “The volunteer fell in love with her right then.”
But love alone wasn’t enough. Every day that passed meant Dawn was closer to running out of time. Whenever someone walked past her kennel, she’d lift herself onto her hind legs and press her body against the bars — silently begging to be noticed, to be saved.
“She was pleading for her life,” Fond said. “People probably looked at her scars and thought she was aggressive. But she was just desperate for love.”
Then, just as the clock was about to run out, someone from the shelter reached out to HAAU — and everything changed.
“They told us she had hours left,” Fond said. “We moved heaven and earth to make it happen.”
Within hours, the rescue found a foster family willing to take Dawn in. When she arrived at her new home, she finally curled up on a soft bed — safe for the first time in who knows how long — and slept for hours.
“When we first rescued her, she was shut down — scared but sweet,” Fond said. “She’d been through so much.”
Her foster parents began gently rebuilding her trust. They fed her small, regular meals to help her gain weight, spoke softly to her, and held her when she trembled. Slowly, Dawn began to heal.
And then one day, she smiled.
Her foster dad took her on a special outing — a trip to the pet store. For the first time, Dawn got to be a dog again. She sniffed every toy, tail wagging wildly, and proudly picked out her favorites all by herself.
“She chose her own toys,” Fond said. “It brought tears to our eyes. That moment reminded us exactly why we rescue.”
You can watch that moment here:
Today, Dawn is thriving in her foster home — surrounded by love, toys, and hope. Her days of fear are long behind her, and her future is finally bright.
She’s still waiting for her forever family, but until that day comes, she knows she’s safe, loved, and never alone again.
If you’d like to help dogs like Dawn get their second chance, you can support Humans and Animals United here.
