“I saw something moving out of the corner of my eye,” Lochmann wrote on SRSL’s website. “I hit the brakes in the Jeep to get a closer look at a huge mound of trash.”
The dedicated rescuer could’ve sworn she’d seen a dog hanging out on the trash pile, but it appeared uninhabited as she got closer. She thought he might’ve run away until her eyes wandered to a different part of the garbage mound.
Lochmann was startled by the pup’s presence and even more taken aback by his demeanor. She approached him gently, preparing for him to dart away in fear. Sadly, he was too heartbroken to move.
You can watch that moment here:
The poor pup was dangerously skinny, and Lochmann could tell by looking at his prominent ribcage that he hadn’t been cared for in months. The look in his eyes furthered Lochmann’s fears.
The dog was visibly depressed and hopeless. Looking at him, Lochmann’s heart broke, but she knew she could get him the care he desperately needed.
She slipped a leash over his head, but the dog didn’t move. So, she gave him a helping hand.
The dog assumed his previous sleeping position, but this time, he settled into a nest of blankets instead of a mound of trash.
Lochmann fell in love with the pup as they drove to SRSL’s headquarters, and she quickly decided on the perfect name for him.
“I named him Kismet, which means ‘Fate,’” Lochmann wrote. “I can’t believe I stumbled upon him on that dark, grey morning. He would have been so easy to miss.”
Kismet received a warm welcome from the SRSL team, who swiftly created a treatment plan to help him gain weight again. They showered him with love and tucked him into his first real bed while searching for his perfect foster home.
“His foster mom nursed him back to health and fell in love with him,” SRSL wrote in a Facebook update. “It turns out his foster home was his forever home all along. They officially adopted him and love him to pieces.”
It’s been over five years since Kismet’s adoption, and the sweet boy looks like an entirely different dog now. Once a downtrodden, dangerously skinny dog, Kismet has officially reached a healthy weight and regained his puppy-like zest for life.
Kismet may be one of many successful rescue cases at SRSL, but he will forever hold a special place in their hearts. They’ll always see him as a priceless treasure regardless of how he was found.
“In my eyes, he was not trash at all,” Lochmann wrote. “He was a beautiful soul who [deserved] a life of comfort and to be part of a loving family.”