Chihuahua scared of human touch is totally different now
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00:00 She just looked so tiny and frail,
00:02 and I was so afraid of breaking her.
00:04 - We are Carla and Ash,
00:07 and this is Wanda's story for GeoBeats.
00:09 She was scheduled for euthanasia.
00:11 We got a call from the LA shelter system.
00:13 We are a last resort rescue.
00:14 We got her into our foster program,
00:17 and that's where Ash got involved.
00:19 - When Wanda first arrived, I was very, very scared.
00:23 Feared that I would not be able to protect her
00:27 the way I needed to.
00:28 Her spirit was completely broken.
00:30 That's the hardest part.
00:31 You can treat the medical,
00:33 but healing a broken soul is entirely different.
00:37 - Estimated to be between 12 to 17 years old.
00:40 When she got here, she was 3.9 pounds.
00:43 Every time I went to touch her belly,
00:45 she would scream, and I would be so nervous.
00:48 When Wanda was in the shelter,
00:50 they had nicknamed her Don't Touch Me Wanda.
00:53 Over the course of the past year,
00:55 she's really developed a sense of safety and security here.
00:59 - Working, working, working, working, working girl.
01:03 - She has springs in her legs.
01:05 (Wanda screaming)
01:07 She's an athlete.
01:08 - Only going when no dog's gone before.
01:10 - I remember one evening,
01:11 we were laying on the sofa together,
01:13 and she rolled over, and she wanted me to rub her belly.
01:16 And she makes me do that every night now.
01:18 - Working girl, working girl,
01:19 from this angle and that angle.
01:22 - They just started loving each other madly.
01:24 - Yes, you are a superstar.
01:26 - This is a baby girl, this is a baby girl.
01:28 - The busted love nugget transformation.
01:31 - Yes, you are.
01:33 - She'd stop, and you'd roll back over.
01:35 - Wanda is very bossy and very sassy.
01:38 - Good girl, good girl.
01:40 Yay!
01:41 - If I give anybody else attention, she is on it.
01:44 (Wanda screaming)
01:47 She is known to chase off 100-pound pitbulls
01:52 from their food dishes.
01:54 She's missing the portion of her jaw,
01:55 and somehow she manages to eat the kibble
01:57 out of the other dog's bowls.
01:59 Wanda is trying to get in.
02:01 We were always meant to be together.
02:04 - I love you, baby.
02:06 - I've had her for about a year and a half now.
02:09 I'm so in the moment with Wanda.
02:10 She teaches me to live life.
02:12 Who's a good girl?
02:13 My bond with Wanda got so strong
02:16 that we eventually decided that Wanda would forever
02:18 be a long-term foster here at the sanctuary.
02:23 (Wanda cooing)
02:25 These animals are magic.
02:29 They teach us so much.
02:31 Don't write 'em off.
02:32 I know how fearful she was of human touch,
02:35 and the fact that she trusts me to touch her
02:38 and to give her the care that she needs, it's an honor.
02:41 It is an honor and a privilege to be able to care for Wanda.
02:45 She is like my aunt.
02:49 I respect her, I love her.
02:50 She shares her wisdom with me.
02:52 She has taught me so much.
02:55 (gentle music)
02:57 (gentle music)
03:00 (gentle music)
03:03 (upbeat music)