Find your friend

She was calling for help. And we arrived…

She was calling for help. And we arrived… Sometimes a rescue begins with a single phone call. With the words of caring people, with concern for someone who cannot ask for help themselves. That’s exactly how we found out about her. Her neighbours rang us and told us that a dog was howling constantly in one of the houses. Behind that howling lay someone’s distress. A living soul who was perhaps scared, lonely and in great distress. A soul who couldn’t express her pain in words, but could only cry out for help as best she could. We couldn’t stand by and do nothing. So we got together and went there. The dog was being looked after by a woman who had problems with alcohol. We don’t know what this little girl had been through, how long she’d had to wait, or how many times she’d cried out for help before anyone heard her. But we knew one thing: we simply couldn’t just go there and leave her there. And so we took her in. Now she’s at ‘Staryi Druzi’. In a place where she was heard. Where they didn’t turn a blind eye to her plight. Where she’s been given a chance at a different life — free from loneliness and despair, without having to scream at the top of her lungs that she needs help. We cannot save everyone. Unfortunately, our strength and resources are not always enough for everyone who needs them. But if we know that somewhere there is an animal in distress, we try to do everything in our power. Because behind every such call lies a life. Sometimes, for things to change, only one thing is needed: for someone not to walk past. She was heard. They came for her. They took her away. And now her story continues. Perhaps one day she’ll no longer think back on that time. Perhaps she’ll learn to trust, to fall asleep peacefully and to find joy in the simple things. We really hope that something good will finally begin in her life. And may this story serve as a reminder: if you hear someone’s despair — don’t look away. Sometimes a single phone call really can save a life. ‘Old Friend’ — a place where another person’s suffering is never seen as someone else’s problem. ❤️