It’s common for homeless people to stand with signs asking for help. Sometimes the signs can be heartbreaking and sometimes they can be comical, but for the most part people in areas with a high homeless population have learned to ignore them and just keep going. One woman caught sight of a sign and she couldn’t believe what it said. She had to help this man, and his little dog, too.
Wilma Price was coming out of a Walmart when she spotted a man holding a sign that read, “Dog in Pound Need Help.”
“I’ve seen every sign in the world except that one,” Price explained later in a Facebook post.
Price felt compelled to pull over and get the story. She talked to the man, who told her his name was Patrick. He told her that he got arrested for trespassing and spent a few days in jail. When he got out, he learned that his trusty companion, a dog he named ‘Fred Frederick’.
Patrick went to the pound to verify the story and found it was all true. The pound had given Fred some shots, a heartworm test and a flea prevention pill, and there was a $35 impoundment fee, so it would cost $120 to spring Fred.
Unfortunately, Price only had about $8 on her that day. She went to the pound with Patrick but she got the same story about the fee. She wanted to help but she had to go rally up some support. She promised Patrick she would be back. She called a friend for help.
For some, $120 is a lot of money. Some might wonder what was so important about getting Fred out of the pound, but it’s a no-brainer for Price. “Sometimes you just have to dig deeper and do what’s right in your heart,” she explained.
She went home and managed to get help and raise the money for Patrick. She then took him back to the pound. She couldn’t believe how excited Fred was to see him.
“He was shaking when he came out of the pound. It was so happy, happy to see the man so sometimes you just have to dig deeper and do what’s right in your heart. That man loves that dog: on his backpack was the dog’s bowl and toys and it’s helping the dog against the world. The man was very very grateful he had tears in his eyes when the dog came out,” she said.
Now that Patrick and Fred are reunited, Price is still trying to help them by collecting a few items they’ll need to survive. She realizes how important it is to have someone in your life, especially when you’re struggling with life on the streets.
“We’ve all been in a bad situation in our life, so remember always pay it forward you never know who that person might be that you help, but I know for a fact that man loves his dog, and he tried to give me the money he had collected. I wouldn’t accept it because maybe he can have some dinner tonight. He said his dog eats before he does,” she wrote on Facebook.
