Six years ago, a mixed-breed dog was recovered in a police raid on an illegal dog fighting ring in California. Initially, he was in danger of being put down by the animal shelter, as it was doubted that anyone would adopt him. However, when Montana native Chris spotted the traumatized animal in the shelter, he decided to rescue him. It is clear from the images above how traumatized he was. Now, finally, after six years, Scooby has found his voice again and wagged his tail.

Scooby rescued from a dog fighting ring

Now named Scooby, a mixed-breed dog was rescued from a dog fighting ring during a police raid. However, after being taken to an animal shelter, he was immediately at risk of being put to sleep. Staff couldn’t imagine that anyone would want to take in the tattered and traumatized animal.

Luckily for Scooby, Chris, an IT consultant from Montana, spotted the pup and decided to take him in. Moreover, for the past six years, he has been training his shy rescue dog and giving him loads of love.

Patience with a traumatized dog

Chris asked that his personal details be kept private, in case he and Scooby were found by the dog fighting ring. However, he explained that when he first adopted the pup, he didn’t know how to wag his tail or eat treats.

According to Chris, Scooby was different from other victims of dog fighting and had a totally different temperament. He said:

There were two-to-three years of no sound. I was like ‘dude, we have got to change this.’

In fact, it turns out that one of Chris’s favorite things about Scooby is his willingness to change. He said his main focus has been to train the pup to be normal, rather than well-behaved. He said even Scooby’s misbehavior is celebrated, as it is considered a sign of him becoming a normal dog. In fact, his kind owner has been working tirelessly to heal the dog from his trauma. Chris hoped to get Scooby to bark and howl by encouraging him to find his voice.

Finally, Chris’s tireless efforts were rewarded last year. Much to his delight, Scooby finally got the courage to yawn and squeal in happiness. He also finally wagged his tail, all those years after being rescued from the dog fighting ring.

More than just a dog

It turns out Chris came across Scooby shortly after his father passed away. For that reason, the dog means so much more than just an animal to him. He explained:

When I found him I was going through a tough time. I was like, ‘I need company and this dog needs help.’ It was perfect.

Chris added that Scooby was completely closed down when he found him. In fact, he doesn’t believe the dog will ever be totally normal, but then he doesn’t have to be.

He was just emotionally broken. He just needed to be fixed a little.

Readers can watch a video, showing Scooby’s first bark and tail wag here:

Thank you, Chris, for your kind heart and unceasing efforts with Scooby, who is finally getting over some of the trauma of the dog fighting ring.

We recently reported on another dog, rescued from similar circumstances in Spain. However, in Homie’s case, he was lucky to still be a small pup when he was rescued. The American Staffy is now famous in the small coastal town where he lives for giving everyone passing by a ball to throw for him.