On a drizzly November morning in 2024, one of our volunteers spotted a skinny, trembling puppy huddled beneath an overturned shopping cart on Peralta Street in West Oakland. She was maybe four months old, caked in mud, ribs visible under matted fur. She wouldn't make eye contact. She flinched at every sound.
The volunteer, Marcus Tillman, wrapped her in his jacket and drove straight to our shelter. "I almost missed her," he told us later. "She was so still, I thought she was a pile of rags. Then I saw her tail twitch."
We named her Luna. And over the next 18 months, she would become one of the most remarkable animals East Bay Paws has ever rescued.
The First Weeks: Learning to Trust
Luna arrived at the shelter severely underweight at just 14 pounds. Our veterinary team, led by Dr. Keiko Tanaka, diagnosed her with a respiratory infection, intestinal parasites, and significant anxiety likely caused by prolonged neglect. She wouldn't eat from a bowl — only from a human hand, and only after 20 minutes of patient coaxing.
"Dogs like Luna have essentially been running on pure survival instinct," Dr. Tanaka explained. "Their nervous system is in permanent fight-or-flight. The hardest part isn't the physical healing — it's teaching them that the world can be safe."
Luna was placed with Sandra Kim, one of our most experienced foster parents. Sandra has fostered over 40 animals with East Bay Paws, but Luna was different. "Most dogs warm up within a week or two," Sandra said. "Luna took six weeks before she'd let me sit next to her on the couch. Eight weeks before she wagged her tail. But once she decided to trust me, it was like someone flipped a switch."
A Hidden Gift
Sandra noticed something unusual about Luna early on. Whenever Sandra's elderly mother, who lives with early-stage dementia, became agitated or confused, Luna would quietly pad over and rest her head on the woman's lap. The effect was immediate and remarkable: her mother's breathing would slow, her hands would unclench, and she'd begin gently stroking Luna's ears, often smiling for the first time all day.
"Luna could read the room in a way I've never seen in a dog. She didn't need to be told someone was hurting. She just knew, and she went to them." — Sandra Kim, Foster Parent
Sandra mentioned this behavior to Dr. Tanaka, who connected her with Paws of Purpose, a therapy dog certification program based in Walnut Creek. The program's director, Angela Reeves, evaluated Luna and was astonished.
"We test for about 20 different temperament indicators," Reeves said. "Most dogs that become therapy animals score well on 12 or 13. Luna scored high on 18. Her emotional sensitivity is off the charts. The irony is that the same trait that made her so fragile as a stray — her extreme sensitivity to human emotions — is what makes her exceptional as a therapy dog."
Certification and a New Purpose
Luna completed her therapy dog certification in September 2025 — just ten months after being pulled from under that shopping cart. Sandra formally adopted her and the two began volunteering together immediately.
Today, Luna visits three locations weekly: the Alta Bates Summit medical center pediatric ward on Tuesdays, the Emeryville Senior Center on Wednesdays, and Lincoln Elementary School's special education classroom on Fridays. At each stop, the response is the same: people light up when she walks in.
At Lincoln Elementary, Luna works with a group of eight children on the autism spectrum. Their teacher, David Moreno, says Luna has been transformative. "We have kids who struggle with verbal communication, and they'll sit and read aloud to Luna for 30 minutes straight. She doesn't judge, she doesn't interrupt, she doesn't get impatient. She just listens. For some of these kids, Luna is the first audience that made them feel safe enough to use their voice."
What Luna Taught Us
Luna's journey from the streets of West Oakland to the pediatric ward of a hospital is extraordinary, but it also illustrates something we see every day at East Bay Paws: every animal that comes through our doors has potential that neglect and hardship have temporarily hidden.
Since Luna's story went viral on local news, we've seen a 40% increase in foster applications. More importantly, three other dogs from our shelter have entered therapy dog training programs, inspired by Luna's example.
"People look at a stray dog and see a problem," says Marcus, the volunteer who found her. "I look at Luna now and I see the answer. The answer to so many questions about what love and patience can do."
Luna turns two this November. Sandra is planning a birthday party at the shelter. All 385 of our donors are invited.