Brady Oliveira, an athlete and an independent animal rescuer, was on the road when he spotted what seemed to be a puppy underneath an old couch sitting by the side of the street. Curious, he pulled over to investigate. And as soon as he approached, not one, not two, but six puppies came out running.
He was delighted to meet the little furry siblings, but when the momma dog walked toward him, too, he knew something was off. The dogs belonged to the family that lived in the house upfront, he assumed. He wished to talk to them about the dogs’ state of living but no one answered when he knocked on the door.
There was no way he’d leave them behind. He knew the puppies, even the mom, would not survive if they stayed long out in the cold. So, he sought help from the authority and he didn’t stop until he was allowed to take the dogs with him.
Brady secured the momma dog in his car first and then continued to catch the puppies, one by one. The first five puppies were easy to capture, but the last one was so terrified to let her rescuer come close. She gave him a hard time catching her, that’s for sure.
After about half an hour, the rescuer was finally ready to head to the rescue center, where foster families waited. For some reason, he couldn’t stop thinking about the last puppy so he took her from the back of his car and had her sit with him while he drove. He forced his love on her and decided to bring him home instead to foster.
The puppy, which Brady called Hazel because of her shiny chocolate brown fur, felt terrified about the sudden change in her environment. She froze in a corner and did not move at all. But after her first real meal and first bath, she relaxed and started to slowly decompress.
A couple of days later, Hazel started playing with Brady’s dogs, Gunnar and Nellie. She loved being around them and it would have been too hard to separate from them once she gets adopted. Luckily for her, she didn’t have to go far to be with her new mom.
Hazel was adopted by Brady’s sister, Kallee. Her aunt became her mom and her foster dad ended up being her uncle. Gunner and Nellie, meanwhile, remained to be her best buddies.
Credits: Brady Oliveira and The Dodo
