Everyone Was Terrified of My Dog Until I Did This One Thing That Changed His Life
Natalie Hoage
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Mystic, a ten-year-old dog with a history of abuse and neglect, was facing euthanasia due to her aggression. Just days before this was to happen, Mary McGurn learned about Mystic’s deeply traumatic past. Feeling a strong connection and an urge to help, Mary decided to intervene and try to save her.
Fueled by a firm belief in the transformative power of patience and compassion, Mary chose not to give up on Mystic, and took her home to give her a second chance at life. While the road to healing was not an easy one, it is one that Mary knows was worth it.
Mystic’s Abusive Past
Mary McGurn lives in Omaha, Nebraska and has always been a dog lover. She considers herself “a sucker” for black Labrador Retrievers and has welcomed four of them into her family over the years. When a co-worker mentioned to her that she knew someone who had a 10-year-old black lab they could no longer keep and “was going to take to the pound and have her put to sleep,” Mary knew she had to meet the dog.
Mary met Mystic just days before her owner decided that she was not worth keeping. She was surprised by Mystic’s response to those around her; she ignored her owners and didn’t even pay attention to Mary while she was there.
Mental & Physical Scars
Mystic’s owner explained the path that led her to them. The first ten years of her life were very sad, and very hard. She had been tossed around from home to home. Her previous owners had all been drug dealers, putting Mystic in situations that led to horrific incidents that left her with both mental and physical scars.
She had been stabbed during a drug deal gone bad, but luckily survived her wounds. Another time she found herself in the middle of a fight between drug dealers. During the tense and dangerous incident, she had been shot at.
Not only had she been treated poorly by the humans that were supposed to protect and love her, she also had to protect herself from other dogs. Mystic was left to roam the streets for days and weeks at a time. While trying to survive on her own, she had been in numerous dog fights. She was covered in scars, and after years of abuse, the only defense she had left was her aggression.
Mary was taken aback by the tragic life Mystic had led. “I don’t think she ever played. She didn’t seem to know how. Before I got her, her life centered around finding food and monitoring her surroundings for danger.”
The traumatized dog didn’t like people or other dogs, but Mary could see something behind her tough exterior and offered to take her in for a two-week trial.
A Second Chance at Life
It did not go well from the beginning. Mystic was aggressive towards Mary and any other person or dog she met. She would attack anytime she felt threatened or when she didn’t know what else to do. Mary shared, “She snapped, growled, and attacked whenever I was around. After two weeks I was able to put a collar and leash on her and walked her in the neighborhood. Anyone, with or without a dog, was viciously lunged at. Needless to say, when people saw us coming, they went the other way.”
Getting out, exploring, & being able to find beauty where there was once only pain is what healed her soul.
Mary McGurn
Mary has always prided herself on having well trained dogs and was saddened by Mystic’s aggressive behavior. Mary admitted during the first few months that they were together, she seriously considered not keeping her. She constantly had to remind herself of the horrible life Mystic had led and decided to continue providing the dog with training, patience, and love.
Mystic Makes an Amazing Transformation
Mary credits the walks that she taught Mystic to take every day as being the one thing that saved her life, “She loved going for walks once she understood what the leash was…grabbing her leash became her way of letting me know it was time.” Mystic needed the routine and she needed those walks. Getting out, exploring, and being able to find beauty where there was once only pain is what healed her soul.
It took a lot of time, patience, and consistency, but eight months later, Mary said that Mystic had become a completely different dog. She was no longer snapping and biting. While she was still aloof around strangers and other animals, she was no longer aggressive. “She was no longer a snarling vicious beast who terrorized the neighborhood.”
After hundreds of walks together, Mary was able to describe Mystic as, “…a perfectly behaved dog, who loved going to the groomer, and who the neighbors were no longer afraid of. They’d stop to pet her, and she soaked it up. She became a cuddle puppy, eagerly awaited pets from the Amazon guy, and went for walks with my neighbor and his dog.”
Mary laughs as she remembers how Mystic grew to love and count on those daily walks. “The only “bad” thing she ever did (after the snapping and biting phase stopped) was that she grabbed toilet paper and would either shred or unravel it. She only did that when I didn’t take her for a walk quickly enough. That always made me laugh. Sometimes after doing that she’d jump on the couch next to me with a piece of toilet paper hanging from her mouth!”
Mystic has left a bigger hole in my heart than I ever imagined she could. She was such a precious gift.
Mary McGurn
What Mary Learned from Mystic
Mystic lived with Mary for two and a half years before she passed away at the age of 13. Mary loved the brief time that they were able to share together and added that they had a very strong bond that was full of love. “She was a good dog, but it saddens me to think what a fantastic, loving, happy girl she’d have been if she had been born into a loving family.”
Mystic learned to trust humans again, and while it was not an easy road to travel, Mary looks back on Mystic’s amazing transformation with nothing but positivity. “I have a small scar on my wrist from one of her early attacks.” Mary shared. “When I look at it, I smile because it reminds me of how strong love is and what it can overcome. Of all of the terrific dogs I have had, Mystic has left a bigger hole in my heart than I ever imagined she could. She was such a precious gift.”
Stories full of patience and tenacity like Mary and Mystic’s show us that even the most vicious of dogs deserve a second chance. Mystic was lucky that Mary found her, and that she was able to live the last couple years of her life learning what peace and love were all about.
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