Abandoned Dog Seen Wandering Detroit Streets With Stuffed Toy Has Been Rescued

May 6, 2023

A German shepherd who was wandering Detroit with a stuffed toy after her owner died is safe and preparing for her forever home after animal rescue groups and animal lovers came together to find her.

Nikki

Once her story was posted online, people with It Is Pawzable, South Lyon Murphy Lost Animal Recovery, Sugar Mutts Dog Grooming, Almost Home Animal Rescue, and others came together to find the German shepherd by showing photos of her to nearby residents.

"All she had left was the stuffy from her owner she was carrying around. Our hearts broke when we saw this photo and heard what happened to her, it reminded us of the movie 'Annie' where Annie kept a locket close to her heart from her parents," Almost Home wrote in a Facebook post.

"Everybody was posting pictures in Detroit of who they were calling Nicholas, now Nikki because it’s a female, and of course started tagging Heather, South Lyon Murphy - can you help trap this dog?" said Katrina Weaver, the owner of It Is Pawzable Dog Training.

"Everybody comes together and works as a team, which is so amazing," she added.

One neighbor had been feeding Nikki while she was homeless. She is now working with the rescues to find the dog a home.

South Lyon Murphy Lost Animal Recovery posted a heartwarming thank-you message to everyone who helped save Nikki.

"There's so many people to think it’s a really long list. Without Almost Home backing the dog or another rescue, unfortunately, we can't recover them.

Thank you to Rebeka who watched out for her and has been feeding her for the past several months.

Thank you to SugarMutts who will be doing her grooming. I can tell you she is absolutely filthy and her double coat is still in there and she's going to feel so much better when that’s all washed and blown out.

Thank you to every single one of you who donated, wanted to know how she was, called, message, communicated and posted, wanting to know what her status was. All of us can do what we do but without you guys, we are nothing. United, we stand and divided we fall."

Unfortunately, Nikki is heartworm positive and is currently undergoing a 4-week treatment. As Nikki receives her care, the animal workers are making sure she is ready to head to her foster home.