A pregnant dog who was found discarded on the streets has been given a second chance at life, and now you’d hardly recognize her.
Dog owner Rachele Miceli, 31, has taken to the internet to reveal the heartbreaking reason why she adopted a sixth pup in April 2024. The dog, named LunaNuova, was found near the entrance to the highway, looking like skin and bones and she could barely stand.
Miceli, who resides in Italy, told Newsweek that she believes LunaNuova is an abandoned hunting dog, possibly left behind because “she was too old.” It’s unclear how old the sweet dog may be, but Miceli estimates she may be between 8 and 10 years old, and she was also pregnant.
“She was skin and bones, with twisted hind legs—she couldn’t keep them straight, whether standing or walking,” Miceli said. “Especially the right one, which she doesn’t even rest on except for the tip of her paw.
“She had a large mass near her rear mammary glands that I thought was a tumor, but when my vet operated, he discovered it was a hernia with her uterus half collapsed inside. She was also pregnant with two puppies (the puppies didn’t survive the surgery, and she is alive by a miracle).”
LunaNuova was severely anemic when she was found, so Miceli started feeding her beef fillet daily to improve her condition. Her teeth were in terrible shape, likely because she’d been eating “whatever she could find” as she tried to stay alive.
Regardless of the dog’s ill health, and despite the vets suggesting that she wouldn’t survive the surgery, Miceli knew she wanted to keep LunaNuova.
The senior dog may have had a rough start to life, but Miceli is determined to give her the best golden years she could ask for. Now, LunaNuova is the latest addition to Miceli’s pack of rescue dogs, joining Pippo, Buddy, Cara, Alesa and Mariocane.
Micelo shared a post on TikTok (@rachele.elisabetta) documenting LunaNuova’s extraordinary rescue story. The photos, which show how emaciated she looked when she was found, broke so many hearts, leading to more than 86,100 views and 16,000 likes on TikTok at the time of writing.
Miceli said: “I had no doubt that I would keep her forever as soon as I found her. It took a couple of days for the others to get used to her, especially Mariocane, who in 2024 was less than two years old but already weighed 50kg and was very jealous. Now he’s her number one protector—they sleep together almost every night.
“LunaNuova is a happy dog, and that’s all that matters to me. I know I’ve made her happy, and I got confirmation of that when I shared her story online.”
Thankfully, LunaNuova has come a long way since then. She still gets fearful when people approach her, particularly men, but she is so much happier and healthier. Miceli loves taking LunaNuova out to lunch with her friends and they often go out for long walks together.
It’s safe to say that LunaNuova has been transformed by the love and care that she’s received. Social media users have praised Miceli for giving this sweet dog a second chance, leading to more than 890 comments on TikTok so far.
One comment reads: “beautiful dog, and you deserve the best.”
Another TikTok user wrote: “Thank you for loving her as much as she loves you.”
While another person replied: “Awww her smile, thank you for being her angel in this life.”
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? We want to see the best ones! Send them in to life@newsweek.com and they could appear on our site.
