A few weeks ago in Fresno, a Motel 6 housekeeper was doing their daily rounds when they came across a heartbreaking sight — a tiny pit bull puppy had been left behind in one of the rooms.
The motel called animal control officer Rudy Pina, who got there as quickly as he could to assess the situation. When Pina arrived, the puppy poked his head out from between the room’s two beds, unsure if he could trust him. When he realized he was finally safe, he opened up to Pina right away.
“When I saw the puppy come up to me, I could immediately tell [he] was very healthy and very friendly,” Pina told The Dodo.
Pina estimated that the puppy had been stuck in the room for one to two days. In other words, help arrived in the nick of time.
Pina took the puppy over to Fresno Animal Center, where he really started to show his lovable, outgoing personality. He kept wagging his tail and jumping all over Pina.
“He’s super sweet. He’s a good-looking pup,” Pina said.
While the idea of a puppy being abandoned in a motel room may seem shocking, sadly, Pina said it’s not actually that uncommon of an occurrence.
“Unfortunately, that does happen quite often … Believe it or not, it’s almost weekly,” Pina said.
Pina mentioned that a big part of why he posts videos about his work as an animal control officer is to spread awareness about these kinds of issues.
Thankfully, for this particular pup, being left in a motel room is only the beginning of his story.
Pina’s TikTok about the puppy’s rescue journey gained so much traction that someone decided to adopt him. Now, he’ll never have to worry about getting left behind again.
