Luna

For a few days now, in the village where I live, I’ve become familiar with a dog I’ve named “Luna.” All the other dogs came and went, but Luna stayed. As I write this, she’s nearby. Wherever I go in the village, Luna follows me.

At first, I sent some photos of Luna to a friend abroad who takes care of pregnant dogs. They confirmed that she is pregnant. She seemed sick at first as if no one had ever touched her before. Today, wearing gloves, I examined her body carefully, following what I’d read about English pointers. She isn’t sick, but she has some scars, probably from a fight.

She treats me as if she recognizes her owner. A few days ago, I told one of the villagers that this dog is pregnant and needs care. He said, “Her owner takes care of her.” Until today, I thought she had one. But I kept wondering, if she’s always with me, then where is her owner? Where is her home?

Just tonight, a few hours ago, I met another villager and asked, “Where does this dog live?” The story was sad and since then, I can’t stop thinking about her. He said that someone from the village brought this dog here, but then left and abandoned her. Since then, she’s been going from house to house asking for food. She once had a home and a life, and now she’s been left alone, right when she’s pregnant and needs care the most.

I think this dog is waiting, you can see it in her behavior. She follows me, but often looks back as if she’s searching for someone. I’ve known many dogs, and I understand some of their looks and behaviors. This one is very loyal. I’ve seen her wander far, but she always comes back to this village. She’s simple, kind, and sad, as if she’s been hurt by humans. It’s hard to describe, but it feels like she’s unsure whether to trust someone again.

Yet the world is made in such a way that she still depends on humans. Her food must come from people. She’s a hunting breed, once trained for companionship and work, but now left in the wild. When I examined and gently massaged her with gloves, I discovered her wounds, and tonight I realized it’s her broken heart that makes her eyes so sad. Truly, humans live cruelly with animals.

Puppies: Day 2

Yesterday afternoon, the second day after the puppies were born, when I got home, a light rain was falling. Luna came after me, breathing fast and anxiously, and led me to a place she had built herself to give birth and care for her pups. Earlier, professionals had told me I shouldn’t move them; and in my own reading, I’d learned that she had chosen this spot instinctively, as a safe place. Yet, of course, she couldn’t foresee the rain and the forces of nature.

When we arrived, she looked at me; her eyes seemed to say, “Now you see why I wanted you to come?” The ground was damp, and the puppies were slightly wet. It was as if she wanted to tell me, “That roof you built for me over there, come build it here.” So I spent a while building a small shelter to protect them from the rain. Supplies were scarce, the muddy ground, the rain, the thick plants and branches all made the work difficult, but I did everything I could.

When the roof finally stood in place, it was as if her worry melted away. Her behavior changed all at once; she calmed down, lay down, and began to nurse her pups. I take joy in this quiet companionship, yet there’s a hidden sorrow within me: that a stray, lonely, abandoned dog has now brought six more beings like herself into the world, and the cycle continues. Perhaps something could be done? But who am I to decide for her, or for nature itself? Maybe one must simply let nature follow its own course.

Now she has a roof, though a fragile one; food, though not much; and affection, brief, but sincere. This is the furthest I allow myself to interfere with the work of nature. Heavier rains are coming, and I don’t know what fate has in store. For now, though, she seems happy, she eats, she nurses, her intelligence amazes me. Her only troubles are rain and food. I don’t know what will happen when I’m gone; perhaps I should just let nature find its ow

With a heavy heart and deep sadness I write this, my throat too tight to speak about Luna, the dog whose story I want to tell. If you don’t know how I met her, I suggest you first read the highlight called “Luna”. After the first chapter of our meeting ended, about a week after she gave birth, I had to leave the village. I didn’t know what else I could do for her. Luna and her puppies had finally found a small shelter there. Before leaving, I bought dog food, cooked some meals, froze them, and gave them to one of the villagers to feed her.

During that time I stayed in touch with that person by phone. Everything sounded fine. Luna was eating well, and all six puppies were healthy. After three weeks, I packed new food and started the trip again, full of excitement to see them. My heart was beating fast, waiting for the reunion. After so many dreams and nightmares about her, I finally reached the village.

I expected Luna to run toward me, just like the old days before she gave birth, when it was only me and her by the river. But this time, she wasn’t there. I went to her shelter. No one was there, not Luna, not the puppies. Worried, I called the neighbor. He said Luna’s owner had found her, taken her and the puppies to the city. I didn’t know the man. I felt both sad and happy. Sad because Luna was gone, because I couldn’t see her again or bring her food. Happy because she had gone home.

But today I woke up to Luna’s voice. I went outside, and she ran to me. It was as if she had been waiting for me for a long time, as if she had found her savior. She first tried to show me her house, saying: look! My puppies are no longer here... ⅔Without thinking too much, I fed her. After a while, she lay down in front of the house where I was staying. She looked sad, broken, hopeless. I had never seen her like that. My first thought was that the villagers had taken her puppies to the city and sold them. That idea was both good and bad, bad because they had separated a mother from her babies, good because maybe each of them now had a home.

Luna left again, and a few hours later she came back. That was the beginning of the tragedy. I saw a thin dry wire wrapped tightly around her neck. It could easily choke her. I freed her. That was when my anger began. I found out she had been kept somewhere with that same cruel wire collar. It was torture. Poor Luna, what had they done to you? In the first chapter of our story, I had found her abandoned and wandering in the village.

After lunch, Luna left again. I guessed she was looking for her puppies. No one told me the truth. But that wire, that sign of cruelty, made me follow her. I found out they had locked her up again, tied to a tree behind a fence with the same wire. This time Luna was crying out, a painful cry begging for help. I ran toward that part of the village.

I saw the same neighbor who was supposed to take care of her. I asked again, “Where is she? Where are the puppies?” He gave the same answer: “Her owner came and took them all.” I said, “But she’s here, someone tied her to a tree.” His face changed, his color faded. He said, “Oh, so they brought her back.” Then he started complaining that this dog had caused trouble. On my way there, more villagers gathered. They shouted, “Don’t untie that dog, she eats our eggs.” Their tone was harsh and angry, as if I were the one who had brought Luna there and told her to steal their eggs.

While freeing her, each knot I untwisted made me look into her innocent eyes and think about the cruelty of humans. About the hands that tied that wire. Each knot I opened broke my heart a little more. Who are we? What kind of creatures are we? I couldn’t believe that not one person would defend this dog. A young woman said, “If you defend her, then you have to take responsibility for her.”

Among them, one man accidentally revealed where the puppies were. He said they had been placed higher up the hill. The villagers looked at Luna as if she deserved to be punished, just because of some eggs that maybe she hadn’t even eaten. It reminded me of the novel The Scarlet Letter, punishment for instinct and love. We went to the place where they were keeping her puppies.

It was an old abandoned house. The puppies were trapped there, far from their mother, far from her milk, fed with bad factory-made milk. It felt like they wanted to destroy Luna’s family, for a reason she herself didn’t even understand. The puppies had grown a bit, they were beautiful, but one was missing. The neighbor said, “A man from Tehran came and took one.” I couldn’t believe it. The cruelty of people toward animals breaks any heart.

With my heart cracked open and my mind full of anger, I took all the remaining puppies. The villagers looked at me as if I had committed a crime, as if I were protecting a criminal who didn’t deserve to live. They seemed shocked that I had found them, as if they had planned together to make sure I’d never see Luna or her puppies again. When I brought the puppies home, Luna was waiting at the door. I had to tie her up so she wouldn’t run away, because if they caught her again, they would kill her.

The reunion between Luna and her puppies was like a scene from a sad movie. She sniffed the sack they were in, circled it again and again before seeing them. In my mind, I heard Bach’s Toccata playing. Luna finally calmed down. Even now, when I think about that moment, tears fill my eyes. The hungry puppies, their eyes now open, found their mother. She began to lick and feed them. Before sunset I built a shelter for them, closing every open space so they couldn’t escape.

The bond between Luna and her puppies happened in an instant. It was as if they all knew exactly what was happening. Luna, who had been restless all day, was now completely calm. She immediately started feeding her babies. The puppies, who had been crying loudly, went silent. That silence, and Luna’s closed eyes, her new wound on the side of her nose, shouted the word “love”. And whenever love begins, words fail.

My life isn’t in a place where I can live with Luna. I canceled a trip to be here, and I’m happy I did. I also changed the date of another trip in the future. I don’t want to leave her until she is safe and stable. Now I need your help. The help I had refused before. If you want to support her care, or more importantly, if you know someone or somewhere that can take good care of her and her puppies, please contact me. Share this story for her.

If you want to help, please do it quickly. Contact me on Telegram or Instagram. Please don’t message just out of excitement or love for puppies. I understand, but they are not in a state to face abandonment again. Luna is a strong dog with a fragile and emotional heart. She is beautiful, kind, loyal, and from the English Pointer breed. A dog that needs to run, jump, and explore outside. I’m waiting for your messages. With respect.