Milky Cyrus

Left on her own

A small white puppy had been left on her own, and all we had to go on was a tip about where she might be. The journey there was long, and it was late at night by the time we arrived. We did not wait for morning.

• Watch the rescue · 26:16

Something moved in the dark

We searched the area, and then, in the darkness, we saw something move. It was her. Tiny, filthy and completely alone, she had been looking for food among the trash and had ended up with her head stuck inside a milk carton. How she had come to be left there, we could not say; all we knew was that she could not get free on her own.

• Watch this moment · 1:12

She let us lift her

We freed her from the carton slowly and gently, because we had seen something in her eye, but it turned out to be a false alarm, and we could not see any wounds. Being free did not end her fear, though: her whole body was trembling, and fleas covered her white coat. Still, she let us lift her. We carried her away from the trash, and she would never have to sleep beside it again.

• Watch this moment · 1:56

One cautious bite

The car became her first safe place, with a clean blanket and warm hands. She would not drink the water we offered, perhaps because fear was still stronger than thirst, so we did not force her and simply stayed close while her eyes followed our every move. Then came food. One cautious sniff, one tiny bite, then another, and slowly the shaking began to ease.

• Watch this moment · 4:13

Dirty, but healthy

With a full belly, she began her first safe night with us, and the next day we went straight to the vet. She looked brighter in daylight, but only a proper checkup could tell us how she really was. The vet examined her carefully, and after everything she had been through, she stayed gentle. The news was what we had hoped for: she was dirty and covered in fleas, but healthy.

• Watch this moment · 11:13

Grass under her paws

Once the checkup was over, the vet fell for her completely, and playtime began. Afterward we took her to a green, quiet yard, where she met a small kitten we had also rescued. Only the night before, she had seen nothing but darkness. Now there was grass under her paws and sunlight on her face, and before long she was lying on her back, asking for one belly rub after another.

• Watch this moment · 17:39

Sleeping without fear

It was finally time to go home, this time with two small passengers. While the kitten set off to investigate the whole car, the puppy curled up in her blanket, and her eyes began to close. For the first time, she could sleep without fear. The day was not quite over, though, because one last thing was still ahead of her: her first bath.

• Watch this moment · 19:18

A home of her own

The puppy we had carried away from the trash that night, her whole body trembling, had begun to learn by the very next day that human hands could be kind. Before long she was resting her head in one of them. Milky Cyrus has since been adopted.