Bali, Indonesia – When animal‑rights activists in Indonesia were called to help a stray dog, even the seasoned rescuers were left breathless: the dog was in a heartbreaking condition! Even so, they refused to give up on him.

Local residents who had been feeding Poleng the dog eventually reported him to the charity Little Steps Matter.

"The moment we saw Poleng, it was clear he had suffered tremendously," the organization wrote on Instagram.

"His body was ravaged by severe mange, with painfully inflamed skin and thick crusted layers covering him so heavily it almost looked as though he had turned to stone."

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Little Steps Matter described Poleng as the "worst case" of mange the staff had ever seen.

He was taken straight to a veterinarian, where he underwent intensive treatment.

"After all the scraps had fallen off and his skin was healing, he allowed us to touch him," Sabine Kaufmann, the organization’s founder, told The Dodo.

Despite everything he had been through in the past, Poleng turned out to be an extremely sweet and affectionate dog.

After he was nursed back to health, he initially returned to the family that had once helped him.

However, he couldn’t stay there long.

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Poleng was therefore placed with a foster home where he could continue to recover – and he thrived.

Both outwardly and inwardly, the four‑legged friend was almost unrecognizable.

Once his story was posted online, it didn’t take long for another family to come forward, eager to adopt Poleng.

"He’s living a dream life with his family now," Kaufmann said happily.

"They adore him so much. He was really the worst case we ever saw. And then he turned out to be the most goofy, funny, sweetest boy."