Happy ever after for dog who was thrown from bridge in bin bag

A dog who came into Dogs Trust after reportedly being thrown from a bridge over a canal in a black bin bag has found her happy ever after.

Terrier cross Petal is beginning the New Year in her forever home – with a new friend. She arrived at Dogs Trust West London Rehoming Centre last winter.

Manager Richard Moore said: “Petal’s is one of those horror stories. She was handed to the dog warden after reportedly being thrown from a bridge in a bin bag, and the dog warden contacted us.

“She was immediately placed in foster care with one of our amazing canine carers who has provided her with all the love and patience she needs. I’m so happy to say that Steven and his wife Valerie have decided they simply can’t part with her and have adopted Petal.”

Steven Macdougall, who has been working as a canine carer for seven years – a role funded thanks to players of People’s Postcode Lottery – said: “Petal came into the centre two days after we lost our cocker spaniel Ollie and as soon as I heard about her, I went straight to see her. I’ve never seen a dog so traumatised. I had this overwhelming feeling that she was meant to come home with me, almost like Ollie stepped aside to make space for her.

“She’s absolutely tiny – the size of a cat – but is actually about seven or eight years old. We’ve seen such a lot of improvement, but it was extremely slow going until recently. She would only play when we weren’t in the room – we set up hidden cameras to watch her.

“She had shown us that she really liked to be around other dogs – much more than people – so after a long time waiting for the right match we fostered another Dogs Trust dog, Penny. We bonded as soon as we met on the intake block, and I just knew she was the missing piece of the jigsaw in Petal’s rehabilitation. They clicked so quickly we’ve now adopted Penny too.”

The pair are inseparable, and with the help of Penny’s presence, Petal is now gaining confidence at a fast rate.

Steven said: “It’s awful to imagine what she must have gone through. Seeing her as she is now, playing with Penny – it’s the happy ever after I was hoping for.”

If you would like to help us to continue to be there for more dogs like Petal and Penny, please give what you can by visiting www.dogstrust.org.uk/changethetale