Duchess the dog was in a bad place when she was first discovered in 1999. She lived with her canine family in a hole under an abandoned house in the Bronx. The pup was frail, frightened, and infested with fleas and ticks, but Zulma Cruz was there to look after her.
Cruz, along with Paul and Doreen Eiseman, founded the New York animal rescue non-profit Loving Touch. Since meeting Duchess, they’ve cared for hundreds of animals. Still, they’ve never met another with a story quite like hers.
