A Crying Dog On A Street Corner Led Rescuers To A Troubling Scene

As the rescuers inch toward her, the dog is howling and whimpering: something is causing her great distress. The rescue team’s hearts fill with emotion, even though they are well used to encountering hurt canines on the streets of this city. It’s a place where such animals tend to roam free, uncared for and facing danger at every turn.

As we can see in a YouTube video shot by the rescuers, the barking, howling dog is a grubby white animal, with a black head that looks something like a mask. She’s not in fantastic shape, appearing malnourished and scraggly. But she’s not unfriendly when the rescuers approach, grateful that they’ve heeded her plea for help.

And when the rescuers do venture closer, they come across an astonishing sight. It’s not what they expected when they received the call asking for help. But they take it in their stride: just another day on the streets. They don’t shy away or refuse their aid — they’re not in the habit of giving up on a hard case.

The men called to help the miserable mutt are from Animal Aid Unlimited (AAU). As you can guess from their name, these are a group of people dedicated to helping wild creatures and strays. In particular, they aim to enhance the welfare of animals in need who live on the streets of Udaipur, in northern India. Leading by example, they aspire to encourage others to treat these creatures with similar kindness.

Udaipur is a magnet for tourists, situated in Rajasthan, a state full of history and romance in northern India. It’s known as the “White City” because it has many stunning buildings constructed by the native Rajputs, ranging from fortifications to palaces. Some also call it “The City of the Lakes” because the settlement is ringed by seven bodies of water.

Given the number of animals that come to grief in Udaipur, AAU is kept very busy: annually it rescues in excess of 15,000 hurt animals from its streets. It’s been in operation since 2002 when it set up a hotline so that locals could call to request help for stricken animals. And some days, as many as 100 people do exactly that.

The team works from dawn until way past dusk, with up to four ambulances taking to the streets from 7:00 a.m. until midnight. What’s more, one is available 24 hours a day to ensure that the really desperate cases don’t go without help, either. The rescuers don’t let conditions stop them: if there’s a dog down a well, down the well they’ll go.

AAU maintains a sanctuary, which is a haven for a couple of hundred animals — not just dogs, although there are 50 of those! They’ve all been saved and are now living contentedly in a safe place. One of their number is Deepak. This beautiful fellow had been run over by a train, leaving him with smashed legs.

The AAU website notes there are plenty of ways that animals can suffer on the mean streets of Udaipur: fighting among themselves, tangling with bicycles, and a simple lack of food are just three. It’s quite common for local people to feed dogs, but not to touch them or show them any affection, so if they do fall ill, it can be that no one really notices until it’s serious.

The weather isn’t the animals’ friend either. When the monsoon rains come, they bring flies, whose maggots can be a real pest. Even quite insignificant wounds can soon be filled with larvae, dooming the animal. Winters are very chilly, making the nights hard for pups to survive, while summers are scorching, leaving sick dogs dehydrated and suffering heatstroke.

One example of a rescued canine is Herman. He suffered from a damaged spine, caused when a vehicle struck him. It seemed as though the dog might never walk again, but a few weeks’ tender loving care at AAU brought something like a miracle. Herman took to his feet and was able to make a few tottering steps.

Another good boy, aptly named Hopeful, came in with a wound to his neck that staggered the team at AAU. He could barely pick his head up. It was touch-and-go for Hopeful, but the pooch hung in there, and the rescue’s hospital took on the mammoth task of fixing the damage. Successfully, too: the aptly-named Hopeful made a full recovery!

Meanwhile, when baby goat Suri came into the AAU shelter, the team was shocked. Tar that gone hard covered her head to hoof. The poor animal couldn’t even manage to call for her mom, with the only part of her not tarred into immobility being her eyes. But long, hard work managed to save the kid’s life.

Even horses have a place in the AAU world. The shelter took in blind nag Sukie, who’d been left on her own after an accident on the roads. Her big problem was loneliness, as she was the sole equine at the facility. Then the shelter took in Belle, a beautiful little horse who had delivered herself to the haven and found a friend in Sukie.

Another story concerns woofer Guli, for whom the future looked grim after she developed a massive shoulder tumor. It looked like that might be the end for her. But the AAU didn’t think so. The tumor would have been a death sentence for a street dog, eventually robbing the stricken animal of her capacity for walking. The shelter removed it, though, and now she’s in great shape.

It’s not just young pups who find new hope at the AAU shelter. Older dogs also find a home, saved from the desperate fate they’d face on the streets. And it’s not just a temporary haven either. The dog pictured here, Ziggy, is one of four old-timers in their forever home, and nothing is going to rip them away from it!

Batani, meanwhile, was certainly happy to come to the shelter. He had been terribly injured by a car, and much of the damage was inside his body, unseen. Worst of all, his spine was hurt, so he couldn’t pick up his head to eat. It took a lot of loving care to get this good boy back on his feet, but you wouldn’t know it to see him now!

So we come to the idea of a dog calling for help. You may be familiar with Lassie, subject of more than one film and a TV series. She is a collie who has such a tight bond with her owner that she’s always on hand to get help when he needs it. But is this something that happens in real life?

Well Bethel, Connecticut, pup Bubba is a real-life Lassie. When his brother dog Moose found himself in quicksand in a swamp, Bubba sprang into action. He went to find some nearby people — no one he knew — and his antics alerted them to something being up. Jumping and barking did the trick for the clever canine.

Another dog who asked for people’s aid lived in Romania. Heidi found herself cast out on the streets, and when she got mange, people steered very clear. But Heidi wasn’t just going to suffer. She upped and started asking passers-by for help until one finally took her to a shelter, where she was helped to recover.

A further canine who found her way onto YouTube was living in the Serbian city of Mladenovac. There she had a drainpipe as her only shelter, which became more of a problem when she had a litter. Then she called out for help from people as they went by, right up to the point she too was rescued by friendly animal angels.

Which brings us to our girl on the corner of the street in Udaipur, and you’ve probably realized that she was asking for help. Certainly, as the animal rescuers approached, they were sure that that was exactly what she needed. And they had a camera with them, which caught every moment of what came next.

Apart from the incessant woofing of the dog, it’s a normal street scene. There aren’t too many people about on a bright day. The street is a bit rougher, maybe, than some readers may be used to, but it could be any part of an Indian city. The white palaces of Udaipur seem quite distant from this small part of town.

As the camera swoops in to take a closer look, it slowly becomes apparent why the dog has been barking. There’s a small pup lying flat out on the sidewalk. We can’t see any reason that it’s prostrate, but momma dog knows there’s a problem. She’s clearly calling for help.

The poor pup squeals as the camera comes in close. A caption lets us know that the rescue team has been called in by someone who has witnessed its distress. Now, at last, momma’s calls for help have been answered. AAU has turned up, and things will soon look up for the stricken puppy.

A rescuer crouches down by the puppy’s mom. He starts to gently stroke the whimpering youngster’s head. It’s a delicate moment. The mother looks on, perhaps unsure what is happening and what his intentions are. She leans in to sniff at the rescuer, but she seems to trust in what he’s doing.

The puppy starts to squeal much more loudly as the rescuer moves in to pick it up. Momma dog is suddenly unsure. There’s some tension in the moment, but the rescuer remains gentle and patient. The rescuer slides a hand under the distressed puppy’s body and lifts it up ever so slowly.

There’s pandemonium as the rescuer hauls the puppy up off the ground. The pup squeals loud and long, while its mother barks and moves up and down on the sidewalk, totally unsure what is happening. Another dog, maybe its father, races onto the scene to see what might be going on, but the rescuer remains calm.

Both dogs follow the rescuer to the AAU van, but he doesn’t stop to comfort them. The scene fades out, and the next thing we see is the bedraggled puppy back at the shelter. He doesn’t look in very good shape, but he’s getting some of the TLC that he so evidently badly needs.

The work begins to fix the puppy’s woes. He has two injuries on his shoulder. Something has punctured the flesh and left wounds. One of the AAU staff is shaving around one of the affected areas so they can tend to it. Once it’s properly revealed, it can be cleaned and treated.

Squeals of anguish fill the air as the rescuers work, but they’re not allowing them to prevent them from helping the pup. The second wound gets treated. A caption reveals that the poor thing had been in so much pain that it couldn’t even walk. Thank goodness its mom summoned these guys to help out.

Wounds cleaned, it’s time for the pup to be bandaged. Clean white dressings wrap the little dog’s injuries. The two rescuers who are helping him work quickly but carefully. He’s in safe hands with these guys — you can tell they know exactly what they’re doing. Soon they’re done, and it’s time for the pooch to enjoy further pampering.

Shelter staff know exactly what this dog needs, as another caption explains. He’s going to get plenty of love! And it’s coming in the form of a big bowl of food, which a lady is helping him to eat. He’s really enjoying it. Clearly, this pup has not had too many decent meals, and he’s making the most of this one.

After a huge meal, the pup is feeling his strength return. So he wants to give walking a try. And he does a pretty good job! He’s so thankful for the care that he’s getting that he gives the lady who’s helping him walk a big kiss on the nose. This whole episode may be the first time in his short life that this canine has felt kindness from a human.

It seems that the pup has got super-lucky. Food, love, rest… but what is the outcome of this good treatment? Well, for starters, the young dog now has a name. We’re invited to meet Toggle! And he has a spring in his step now. He looks like a whole different puppy, lively, thriving, and lovely.

Toggle looks a million bucks! He’s not the sad, hurt puppy we first met. No way; this animal is full of life and love. As one of the shelter volunteers gives him a cuddle, he responds with licks that say how happy he is. And she’s not the only recipient. The volunteers are all queuing up to show Toggle love.

The crew at the shelter are really enjoying Toggle’s new lease of life. And he’s bouncing around, loving the attention. But there’s somebody who just might be missing the puppy. Yes, that’s right. Out on the streets of Udaipur is his mom. But will she even know who this beautiful boy is?

Well, Toggle might be a bit of a stranger now, but he has no doubts about his mom. His tail wags as fast as a helicopter blade when he meets her. He’s full of kisses, clearly delighted to be back with his loving parent. And his brothers and sisters — a whole gang of littermates. Another caption notes AAU will spay mom once these pups are a bit less dependent.

And Toggle finds a space at mom’s teat straight away. That boy loves his food! He’s unrecognizable now, full of life. Mom looks happier too! She’s glad to have her boy back and in such good shape. Udaipur is a happier place for these hounds after the AAU stepped in.