This is Marley.

Marley was the runt of a litter of four tiny puppies that were orphaned when their mother was hit by a car a few months ago.

All four puppies were hiding underneath barbed wire and some wooden planks when my sister found them – starving, dehydrated, scared and calling out for their mother.

We immediately took them to the vet and then to a kennel where they were fed and watered with their health being monitored for a few days.

Marley’s siblings (Boston, Teddy and Bentley) recovered much quicker than Marley and regained their playful puppy nature within a few days of being in the kennel.

However, Marley remained hiding in the corner of the cage, would barely eat unless she was completely alone and even then was still paranoid and would cower at the slightest noise.

That is when my sister decided to bring her home and attempt to bring her out of her shell just like her siblings (of which Teddy we have already adopted).

My brother and sister live in the third floor of our house where they have their own spacious apartment and balcony – which was to be Marley’s new temporary home.

My sister painstakingly and patiently spent hours every single day with Marley working towards helping her get over her fear and come out of her shell – and the effort she exerted was considerable.

One day – a few weeks after Marley came home – I decided to pay her a visit and was met with a tirade of barking and a look of complete fear in Marley’s eyes that broke my heart because she didn’t realise that I had come with treats, a new toy and lots of love for her.

When remote working was implemented by the government as part of measures to combat the spread of Covid-19 I told my sister that I will spend my shifts in her room because I wanted to connect with Marley.

Of course, during the first few days it was just a party of barking which I decided to ignore and then once Marley realised I was there to stay she started to express curiosity and would peak at me from behind the couch.

I would scatter treats around me to try and coax Marley to approach me, and she would walk towards me (or maybe towards the treats).

You see, even slow progress is good progress and I kept begging for her trust. 

Three weeks later however, I was in the for the surprise of my life when I fell asleep on the floor while watching a movie and forgot that Marley was free roaming the room.

I woke up because something wet had touched my nose.

I didn’t move.

I didn’t breathe.

I didn’t even open my eyes.

Because I knew what it was.

It was Marley, finally accepting my love and trusting me.