'Feral' Chihuahua Is Transformed After Rescue As He Slowly Learns To Trust

A senior chihuahua, named Toothless, has delighted the internet with his remarkable transformation, several weeks after being one of countless dogs rescued from a broken-down trailer.

Toothless was among the 47 dogs, most of which were chihuahuas, who was saved from the devastating conditions of the trailer, which was a bleak hoarding site inside. Toothless was one of the dogs discovered outside the trailer, so it's thought that he's had very little human interaction throughout his life, despite being 10 years old.

Just a day after the rescue took place, Madeleine Cantrell from Houston, Texas, heard about the dogs in need of love, and she couldn't resist adopting Toothless. "He tested positive for heartworm and he has dry eye, causing his eyes to become crusty easily. He had tapeworms and was infested with fleas," Cantrell told Newsweek.

While working for the Houston Humane Society, Cantrell has seen the plight of many stray and mistreated animals, so she was adamant that she would turn Toothless' life around in his senior years.

She said: "The conditions were horrible. All the dogs were living in, or right outside, a broken-down trailer that was falling apart. It smelled so bad of urine that it made everyone's eyes water. Toothless was caught in the woods, so he likely lived right outside the trailer, amongst an outdoor hoard.

"There were 47 dogs in total, most of them were chihuahuas, but I believe there were three larger dogs. A lot of the chihuahuas went to rescue groups in the Houston area, and the others have been adopted."

The rescue of the cohort of neglected dogs is undeniably horrifying but is sadly not highly unusual. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals estimates that 3.1 million dogs enter shelters across the country every year, leading to around 2 million adoptions.

In the weeks since his adoption, Toothless has made an incredible transformation thanks to the medication he is now taking, and his trust grows with every passing day. Despite seeing his recovery first-hand, Cantrell is still left speechless by how far Toothless has come, as she said, "it's hard to believe given how feral he was."

Cantrell has four other rescue dogs, so Toothless has grown really attached to his new siblings, particularly 8-year-old Maltese mix Sunshine.

"Toothless is doing so well now. He is slowly but surely coming out of his feral shell and is such a Velcro dog. He follows me everywhere and loves to be held," Cantrell said.

"He is currently doing slow-kill heartworm treatment due to his age. He has been through his first round of Doxycycline to soften the worms and is now on a monthly preventative to slowly kill them off. He will also need an eye ointment for the rest of his life to treat his dry eye."

Cantrell regularly shares glimpses of her life on social media (@theseniordogsquad) to show people how rewarding it is to adopt a dog, senior dogs in particular. On November 20, she shared a post explaining the story behind Toothless' rescue and what he'd been through, much to the dismay on thousands of TikTokers. The post received more than 22,200 views and 2,400 likes in a matter of days.

By sharing more details about the horror of where Toothless came from, Cantrell hopes she can encourage more people "to adopt and work towards ending animal cruelty."

She said: "So many people online have fallen in love with him, just like I did. Everyone seems to love that he got a happy ending. The city of Houston is notorious for our stray dog population, so it's nice to see a story that ends with so much love."

Many TikTok users took to the comments to praise Cantrell for her tireless efforts in helping these poor dogs, with more than 100 comments so far. One person wrote: "Thank you for saving him."

Another TikToker responded: "You're a beautiful person! Toothless looks so happy to finally feel the love he's always wanted and deserved."

While one person commented: "So adorable, I'm happy you now have your new mum, enjoy all the cuddles in the world."

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