Saint Lucia: HelpAWS remembers Floki, who died a year ago on Feb 1

Castries, Saint Lucia: The Castries-based dog shelter organisation HelpAWS has remembered a little pup Floki, who died a year ago on February 1. “Alone & in pain on the streets of Saint Lucia. He was horribly emaciated, every single bone protruding through his body. He had finally given in to the cruel world, letting himself slip away, too tired and defeated to continue his fight to survive,” the organisation noted.

The organisation mentioned that his time on earth was tragic; he was born without ever feeling unconditional love without getting his belly scratched and no one to tell him how good of a boy he was. He never knew love or the touch of a hand that didn’t intend to harm him. He never had a family that adored him. No long cosy naps by a roaring fire or trips to the cottage.

According to the information provided by the animal welfare organisation, he missed out on all of the simple things luckiest dogs get to do, like chasing a ball, playing fetch with a stick, or going on hikes through the woods with his person, knowing he wouldn’t be abandoned. Instead, he was used for breeding and life on a chain. And when he was no longer useful and could no longer reproduce due to contracting an STD that caused painful, cancerous tumours accompanied by eye and skin infections, he was disposed of – thrown away -to roam aimlessly in the streets and fend for himself.

“This is Floki’s story – all true, except he DIDN’T die a year ago today. Instead, we rescued him with the promise of a better life, a promise of all things he never had- a family of his own, with all the happiness and love he deserves. 365 days ago, after hundreds of people passed him on the roadside, we stopped and saved him,” stated the organisation while remembering the little pup.

It furthermore added that the organisation brought him in and gave him love, shelter, food, and the medical care he needed. He was brave and strong as he underwent chemotherapy to battle TVT, doing what he knew best – fighting to survive. Floki now has a clean bill of health & is the most handsome boy, completely unrecognizable from that day a year ago.

But yet, HelpAWS all have failed him. 365 days later, he is STILL being passed by, still shunned and disregarded. Thousands of people have read organisation’s posts about Floki, but no one – NO ONE – has stepped up to be his person. Floki has spent the last eight months at a board and train facility; safe, but certainly not home. How many more days, weeks, months or years does Floki have to wait to be loved and for a place to call home?