Written by: Cheryl Cole
For any dog lover, your natural instinct when seeing a scared, lonely dog in danger is to try to save them. It’s a no brainer, right? But what if you were on the other side of the world when you found them?
For Vancouver couple Daniel and Fabiola, after the heartbreak of witnessing a street dog getting knocked down and killed on a busy road in Bali, there was no way they were flying home without the puppy they instantly fell in love with.
The couple who were living in Bali found a terrified two-week old puppy in the middle of a rice field while on their way to the gym, just six days before they were due to fly home to Canada.
After witnessing first-hand the devastating fate of one Bali street dog the day before, the couple were willing to do whatever it took to bring this little puppy 8,061 miles back to Vancouver with them.
“We tried everything we could to save that first little dog.” Daniel painfully recalls. “We were trying to get him off the road but he was so scared he ran straight into the busy traffic. Before we could do anything, there was a truck and he was crushed before our eyes. It was absolutely heart-breaking.”
Bali is home to an estimated 150,000 street dogs who roam freely on the island. Although being thought of as the oldest species of dog on earth, dating back 15,000 years, many Balinese dogs are in desperate need of help and living in terrible conditions.
So, when Daniel and Fabiola stumbled upon another little puppy the next day, they knew what they had to do.
“When we found this tiny, beautiful puppy, hungry and alone in a rice field with no one around except the frog he was playing with, we fell in love immediately,” Daniel recalls.
“We named him Froggy and he was ours. There was no way we were leaving without him. Especially after what we had seen the day before. We were still heartbroken but this was our second chance and there was no doubt in either of our minds – this one was joining our family.”
Despite being repeatedly told it would be impossible to get everything in order before they returned to Canada, Daniel and Fabiola refused to accept this and did everything in their power to make it happen.
Six days later, Froggy was on a plane back to Vancouver with his new dog parents and is now a healthy, and happy dog enjoying his new Canadian lifestyle. You can see what he gets up to on his Instagram @froggydabalidoggy. Aww, we love a happy ending!
And as for his new parents, they simply can’t imagine their life without him and were even inspired to start a new business to help more dogs like Froggy.
Named after their precious rescue pup, and motivated by his eagerness to chew through every one of his leashes (dog parents, we’ve all been there!), ‘Froggy Da Doggy’ is a stylish dogs accessories brand that gives 15% of every purchase towards helping street dogs in Bali.
Bali dogs will always have a very special place in the hearts of this Vancouver couple and be warned, things are about to get emotional...
When asked what it means to have a rescue dog as part of the family, Daniel tells us,
“It's hard to describe how special it is to have a rescue dog but my girlfriend and I talk about this often. It's a special kind of love. We feel great knowing that Froggy could be anywhere but he chose us and we chose him. We both have had dogs our entire life but Froggy is a special dog and it’s a very special love. I know all dogs are great, but we think rescue dogs are a level up from greatness.”
We’re not crying...
More about ‘Froggy Da Doggy’...
Here at Pawswap, we love finding you great products for your four-legged besties, but we also enjoy giving Vancouver-grown companies some love, especially when they are dog lovers like these two!
‘Froggy Da Doggy’ is a high quality, stylish dog accessories brand that inspires elegance in everyday life with 15% of every purchase going towards helping street dogs in Bali.
Stylish and handsfree, the leashes can be worn 8 different ways and for all you active dog parents, they are also yoga mat straps. Check out @froggydadoggy on Instagram to see how good they look!
Designed with ultra-strong rope that doesn’t stretch and can pull thousands of pounds, it’s perfect for any dog, big or small.
Sturdy, stylish and for a good cause – what’s not to love?!
After learning more about their story, and checking out their high quality and interesting leashes, we had to partner with them and offer our members an exclusive deal with this local company. Click here to check it out!