Many homeless animals come into a shelter after experiencing a wide range of abuse, and this can effect them in all kinds of ways. Some animals are shy and distrusting of people, while some struggle to eat, sleep or play.
For one dog from Elberton, Georgia, she was so nervous upon arriving at Granite Hills Animal Care that she had completely lost her appetite. But thanks to the love and care provided by one specific person, she finally gained back the confidence that people had worried was gone forever.
Graycie Claire was in such a terrible way when she was taken to the shelter, the rescuers were concerned that she wouldn’t even pull through. The poor dog had been found lying on the side of the road, and she was anemic, emaciated, and hypothermic.
Her physical wounds were only the first hurdle, though, and even when Graycie began to heal physically, mentally she was struggling up an uphill battle.
Graycie was so terrified of humans that at first, she couldn’t even be in the same room as anyone. She’d cower away in the corner and didn’t understand when someone made an attempt to pet her. She thought that they were going to hurt her.
It was clear that whatever background Graycie had come from, it hadn’t been a good one. She was likely to have been abused and mistreated in the past, and the fact that her old owners left her on the side of the road for dead just showed how little they actually cared about her.
The terrified dog was so uncomfortable in her new environment that she didn’t even have the appetite to eat.
She was dangerously skinny as it was, and rescuers knew that it was hugely important for her to begin to eat, or her body would shut down. Thankfully, veterinarian Andy Mathis had a plan.
The kind man had been keeping a close eye on Graycie since she’d first arrived at the shelter, and he had an inkling about what would help her to eat. His plan involved putting his own meal into a dog bowl and squeezing into Graycie’s kennel with her. He hoped that if he ate his food next to her, then she would be encouraged to copy him.
The day that Andy was to carry out his plan, he first put a camera outside the kennel to record any possible wins. We’re certain that he hadn’t at first realized how well his plan was going to work- for Graycie ate up every last bite of her food!
Andy posted the video onto social media back in Feb 13th, 2016, and now he’s come back with an update. Speaking in the caption of one of his latest YouTube videos, Andy said:
“Many people learned of Graycie on Feb 13th, 2016, so we made this video to celebrate the anniversary. I didn’t intend to keep Graycie when she first showed up . . .we were thinking she could be adopted at some point. She has some behavioral and social challenges, along with a physical issue with her bladder (birth defect) that makes her difficult to place in a normal household and normal family.”
In the updated video from February 2017, Andy and Graycie are once again sharing a meal together- but this time, Graycie is looking a lot healthier! Her fur is glossy, and instead of being off her food like she was the year before- it now seems to be the opposite.
She licks her lips as she gobbles up her food, and even tries to take a bite from Andy’s bowl!
It’s clear that Graycie has come a long way since the video back in 2016 – and it wouldn’t have been possible without the love she received from Andy. Watch both of the sweet videos below to see her transformation for yourself!
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