The world of dogs is full of sad stories. Some of these poor pups are just not wanted anymore, some are abandoned, while other ones are even abused by their owners or other heartless people.
Because of this dark reality, it is always beautiful to see a hint of light in the dark in the form of people who are always there to help these poor, helpless creatures.
The story you will witness today is exactly the lightness that was able to illuminate the entire room.
A Rescue He Will Never Forget
On April 26, 2021, Henry was driving through the suburbs of a city. Henry is a full-time van lifer, animal rescuer, and dog dad, as he described himself on his official Instagram profile.
He was driving with his partner, Sidney Ferbrache, when they noticed one poor creature that was hanging around near the road. In a second, they both decided they had to act fast and save this poor dog.
Just before they got out of the van, the dog ran into the fenced yard across the road. This was great because the dog was very agitated and it helped them catch him more easily and put a collar around his neck.
Simba, as they later called him, was very upset when Henry put the collar on him. This was especially noticeable when Sidney somehow managed to stuff him into the trunk of the van.
Poor Simba was obviously abused and abandoned by cruel people, and you all know how sensitive dogs are to human cruelty. It definitely traumatized this dog deeply. Because of that, Henry and Sidney couldn’t just leave him like that.
After giving him some food and gaining at least some of his trust, Henry and Sidney took Simba to Los Adoptales Shelter. There, he was able to focus on getting healthy.
“He went from this totally hairless coyote to just a complete fluffy lion so quickly,” Sidney said for The Dodo.
The transformation lasted for a short time, and Simba was soon ready to come to The Animal Pad, a rescue in San Diego, to find him a forever home.
A Road To His New Family And Life
LB (rescue_and_reactivity), from The Animal Pad, took on the biggest burden of raising this dog from the condition he was in.
“We had no idea, really, the internal trauma we were gonna be working through,” she said.
She stated that Simba wouldn’t even let them touch him at the kennels, and that was the main proof of his horrible trauma. No dog that has not experienced violence would act like that.
That motivated her even more to dedicate herself to this dog and get the best out of him. After constantly working with him every day, she decided to take Simba with her to her home in San Diego.
“It was his first time living in the home,” she stated, adding “It was like seeing the fish out of water.”
Simba was uncomfortable with everything in the house. Aside from not wanting to be touched, he was even uncomfortable getting on the couch. Anything other than all four feet on the ground was too much for him at first.
However, dogs would not be such amazing and beloved creatures if all that had not slowly started to change over time. One day, he just ran up, jumped on, and jumped in her lap just like that.
It was a turning point for Simba and a sign that LB made the best possible move by bringing him into the house.
The Most Beautiful Reunion
The day Simba had been waiting for finally arrived. On September 29, 2022, LB posted on her official Instagram page that Simba finally found his furever home.
With tears in her eyes, she confirmed that this brave lion, as she called him, finally got what he deserved – a warm home and lots of love. According to her, he could not have gotten better foster parents, and in his new home, he also had a little sister who looked just like him.
However, the most touching moment of this whole story happened a little later, 2 years after Simba managed to escape from his old, miserable life.
That day, when Simba crossed the street with his new mom, there was a man waiting for him on the other side. When Simba realized who it was, he immediately ran into his arms. It was Henry, the man for whom Simba was now living his dreams.
It was truly the moment that rounded off this beautiful story and the most touching hug in Simba’s new life.
