When 2-year-old boxer Freon saw rescuer Donna Lochmann standing at the top of the stairs, he didn’t know how to react. It was the first time he had seen anyone in more than two weeks.
Lochmann first learned about Freon when a call from a local landlord came into the Stray Rescue at the St. Louis Animal Shelter, reporting an abandoned dog in one of his properties.
The landlord told shelter staff that Freon’s family had moved to a home that didn’t allow pets, and they trapped Freon on the stairs for more than a week before letting anyone know he was there. Hearing this, Lochman jumped into the car and went straight to the house.
When Lochmann arrived at the scene, she stopped in front of a closed door in the foyer, where Freon is said to live.
“When I knocked on the door [open]I saw him curled up on a landing spot,” Lockman, the shelter’s chief lifesaving officer, told The us.
Although he was alone, Frion was able to survive in the stairwell for nearly two weeks thanks to the bowls of food someone left behind. He also has a source of water to keep him cool on hot summer days.
Lochmann walked down the stairs to Freon’s platform, and to her surprise, the timid puppy let her leash him without question.
“He was a little hesitant to go with me,” Lockman said. “But after a little coaxing with the Wiener, he walked up the steps and went straight out the front door.”
They are gone.
As soon as they got into the car, Flyon, who had no name yet, did something that caught Rockman’s attention.
“He kind of stood in front of us with his face on the air conditioning vent,” Lockman said. “That’s why he got the name Freon, because he likes the cold air on his face.”
As soon as Freon arrived at the sanctuary, he immediately stole everyone’s hearts.
According to a Facebook post, the puppy “kissed everyone” [the] Clinic, even if he had an injection! The post continued that no other dog had behaved like this before.
Freon spent a short time at the sanctuary’s clinic, where he received the medical care he needed after being alone for so long.
Freon was eligible for adoption as soon as he recovered, and his adoption list didn’t last long.
“He now has his forever family,” Lockman said. “He also has a dog brother!”
The staff at Stray Rescue of St. Louis are so happy that now Freon is thriving in his forever home, he can finally put his tragic past behind him.
“We love you, buddy,” wrote the shelter’s post announcing the adoption of Freon. “[There’s] no way back. “
