Fhilcar Faunillani 
The sun was low, casting long shadows across the cracked pavement. Lucy, an albino Doberman, lay thin and trembling in the grass. Her white fur was dull, her ribs sharp under her skin. She’d been there for days. Cars passed. None stopped. Her eyes, pale and searching, followed each one. She was eight years old. …
The dog lay still in the sewer, his body half-sunk in cold, thick mud. His eyes, wide and trembling, watched the world above through a rusted grate. No one came for two days. The metal house overhead creaked in the wind. Shadows of passing feet flickered, but none stopped. His fur, matted with filth, clung …
The dog curled into the corner of the gas station, her fur matted against the cold concrete. Her eyes, wide and searching, followed every car that slowed by the pumps. She didn’t move much. Her body ached, her hips heavy with a pain she couldn’t name. The hum of engines filled the air, but none …
The mother dog lay on the cracked asphalt, her three pups curled against her. Their tiny bodies shivered, though the sun was high. She didn’t move when I approached, just lifted her head, her eyes heavy with something like trust, but worn thin. The parking lot was empty except for them. A week ago, a …
The dog stood by the roadside, trembling. His eyes followed each car, hoping for his owner. His fur was thin, patchy in places. A tumor bulged under his jaw, heavy and sore. He didn’t know why he was alone. He just waited. Every morning, every evening, he stood there. Cars passed. None stopped. His legs …
The dog shivered in the corner. His chain clinked against the cold ground. General’s eyes were dull, like old glass. They held no hope. His fur, once thick and proud, clung in patches to his bony frame. The collar around his neck had bitten deep, carving a raw, swollen wound. He was too weak to …
The phone rang, and her voice broke through tears. My niece, barely ten, found a puppy in a box. It was after school, the sun low over the neighborhood. She saw the cardboard by the curb, tattered and damp. Inside, a puppy whimpered, its tiny body curled tight. She thought it was hungry. She scooped …
The dog moved like a broken machine. His head tilted sharp to one side, neck bent unnatural. One front leg twisted left, the other right, scraping the cracked pavement of Colón’s streets. He didn’t whimper. He just kept going. Each step was a quiet fight against a body that betrayed him. The sun burned high. …
The dog lay in the grass, his body a map of pain. His cries pierced the evening air. I walked with my son through the woods at the edge of town. The air was cool, the kind that settles on your skin after a long day. My boy needed a moment, so we stopped by …
The dog staggered along the empty street. Her legs trembled, barely holding her weight. Cars sped by, their tires humming on the asphalt. No one stopped. No one looked. Her fur was matted, patched with scars. A deep wound gaped across her face. She was thin—too thin. Her ribs pressed against her skin like branches …
The dog stood at the edge of the yard, her chain taut. Her bark was faint, almost a whisper. She saw us and her eyes widened. She lunged forward, the chain yanking her back. Her fur was matted, her ribs sharp beneath her skin. She hadn’t eaten in days. The collar dug into her neck, …
The gate creaked at 1:15 a.m. A man stood there, his shadow sharp under the shelter’s dim light.He held a puppy, small and trembling, and struck it hard, his curses low and bitter. The camera caught it all. His quick glance around, checking for eyes in the dark.He left the pup crumpled by the gate, …
The old dog lay in the dirt, ribs sharp against her skin. Her eyes, clouded but bright, watched the world with quiet hope. She was called Rosie. The man who owned her said she was fifteen. Too old, he said. Useless. He called me one gray morning, his voice flat. “Take the dog,” he said. …
The puppy lay flat in the dust, his body stiff as a board. His weak cries pierced the empty air, pulling at something deep in the chest. He was alone in the wasteland, a patch of cracked earth where nothing grew. His name was Enzo, though we learned that later. His eyes, wide and wet, …
She stood alone on the cracked earth, her eyes searching. The construction site was silent now. Once, she had been their guard dog, fierce and loyal, her barks echoing through the night. Now, the workers were gone, the building finished, and she was left behind, pregnant and abandoned. Her name was never spoken. They called …