The Saint Bernard Old Lady had led a long hard life when she was finally rescued from a puppy mill.

Rough Start Rescue found her a foster home and it looked like Old Lady’s life was finally changing for the better.

But what should have been the start of a new, comfortable stage in her life, suddenly turned into a nightmare as Old Lady suddenly disappeared into the cold wintery woods and put her life in danger.

Old Lady was very skittish due to her traumatic experiences, and when she climbed out of her new foster parent’s car, she unexpectedly got startled and darted off in fear.

She disappeared into the woods, and the odds of her surviving out in the cold did not look good. Old Lady had just received a shave and so she didn’t even have a nice coat of fur to protect her from the icy winds and deep snow.

Despite intensive search efforts, days passed without anybody catching Old Lady.

The poor dog was so scared that she hid herself away and evaded any opportunity for rescue.

Even if she’d had a full a coat of hair, it seemed unlikely that she would survive several days, let alone more than two weeks, alone in the woods.

The hope of finding her alive was burning out.

But Old Lady was tougher than expected. She wasn’t about to let herself die, cold and alone, out in the woods.

Perhaps she knew, deep down, that she deserved to be rescued and get to live out the rest of her life in a loving home.

Against all odds, she kept herself alive until finally, after 17 long days, the Sherburne County Sheriff’s Office received a call about a dog tied up in the woods.

Ruff Start Rescue revealed to their Facebook followers that Old Lady had gotten her leash caught up in some the trees.

She’d been very scared, and they had to approach her very carefully, but they were eventually able to free her from the tree and bring her back with them.

Once she was back with Ruff Start Rescue, Old Lady spent some time recuperating from her ordeal, but just a few days later she was ready to come home to her new foster mom.

Ruff Start Rescue announced the happy news on their Facebook page and added: “ And yes… we have 2 leashes, 1 slip lead, harness and martingale collar on her along with 2 handlers. We’re not taking any chances.”

Ruff Start Rescue thanked The Retrievers for their help in looking for Old Lady, as well as everybody who helped bring attention to the situation. “The exposure is what led this to be possible”, they wrote on Facebook.

Finally, Old Lady’s days of hardship is behind her and she can start to relax in the warmth of her new home. She is safe and sound and she’ll spend the rest of her life loved and cared for.

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Source: Los Angeles Times (edited)