On December 6, a volunteer at the Ruff Start Rescue in St. Paul, Minnesota happened to come across a pit bull mix named Rosabella shivering in an outdoor cage.
Rosabella lay curled up in a ball to fend off the cold winter chill. Left in a Minnesota alleyway with nothing but a thin wire crate to protect her from the elements, Rosabella wouldn’t have survived much longer.
This situation wasn’t just sad, but also life-threatening as that happened to be the coldest day of the year when temperatures fell to four degrees Fahrenheit. Thankfully, a rescue volunteer spotted the pup and rushed her to a safe, warm place.
At the time, a volunteer by the name of Brianna Jensen remarked, “If she hadn’t been found that day, she would have died.”
“She was only 19 pounds, when she should have been closer to 45 pounds,” Kelli Hanson, marketing and communications director of Ruff Start Rescue said. “We don’t know how long she waited [in the cold], but I think she was noticed fairly quickly.”
Rosabella quickly found her forever home while she struggled to regain her health. The former stray dog is now flourishing. Her new mother sent an update, which the rescue posted on Facebook.
It’s been nearly a year since that harrowing day, and Rosabella’s life has completely changed — for the better.
The woman introduced Rosabella to her dog, Lucy, and things went well.
“Lucy and I fell in love with her right away,” the post continued. “She is such a sweet girl, so happy and curious about everything. She follows us everywhere. She has definitely grown a lot, she’s healthy and very active.”
“It has been fun to have Rosabella in my life,” the post read. “She has such a sweet spirit which is amazing considering her background. Now she gets the much-needed love she deserves in her forever home!”
