Laura Jones from Ward, England, has been working in Kerala, India, on a project. During her stay there she has made friends with a scared and abused stray dog, she named Dobby, who now depends on her for a daily meal and protection. The problem is that Jones will soon go back home and if she doesn’t bring back the dog with her, or help it find a new home, her new four-legged best friend will starve and die alone.
“Dobby came onto our site a few days into the project, terrified of everyone, but hungry enough to come looking for any scraps of food she could find,” said Jones. “Despite her nervous nature, she has an incredibly sweet personality, and she just wants to be loved by people.”
The stray is underweight and Jones knows the dog is infested with fleas, but what the rescuer fears more is that Dobby suffers from other health issues that will only be discovered once a veterinarian checks the pet and runs blood tests.
“The reason Dobby is so nervous is that she has been and still is beaten with sticks, and she regularly has rocks thrown at her” said Jones. “All it took was a few gentle pats on the head and she hasn’t left us since.”
The Indian stray sleeps out on Jones’ porch and everyday, the faithful dog lingers around the property, waiting for her rescuer to come back home.
“We can’t bear the thought of leaving her there waiting for us when we go to the airport because she will sit on that porch for a long time waiting for us to come back again,” said Jones.
Jones hopes to save Dobby by taking her home when the project is over, yet the Good Samaritan cannot afford the costs to vet the stray and fly her out of India. An online fund has been created to help Dobby, but so far not enough funds have been raised.
“[I want] to find Dobby a family who will care for her properly. The plan is either to get her back to the UK, where she can be quarantined and treated by a vet before we find her a home, or to pay for any other avenue which will get her the better life she deserves,” said Jones.
If Jones doesn’t find a way to rescue Dobby, at the end of the project she’ll have to leave Dobby behind to her own fate.
What would you do if you were in Jones’ shoes?
