Today, Layla loves cuddles, is always keen for a headscratch and is up for adoption.
When she was first brought into the Dunedin SPCA in November last year, she was so scared she urinated as soon as she saw a person.
SPCA Dunedin centre manager Laura Vander Kley said the day before they found Layla, they got an alert from a member of the public about five dumped puppies.
"So we got these gorgeous wee little puppies ... obviously that’s never good because you’re like, ‘Where did they come from? Where’s mum?"’
It was soon discovered the puppies were from Layla’s most recent litter.
"Layla was absolutely terrified — the one thing that we could actually tell from her right from the get-go is that she had terrible mastitis; her mammary was just gross.
"She was so terrified that our vet had to do an examination from a distance because she was not going to let him get near her."
"She was really, really upset about that," Ms Vander Kley said.
Layla’s recovery and transformation is down to the hard work of SPCA staff and volunteers.
After realising Layla was not so keen on men, SPCA staff put a plan in place.
"I can’t thank my volunteers enough ... putting themselves out there with this dog that doesn’t like males."
There was still some work left to do with Layla, so she would be better suited to an owner with some experience who did not have other animals, Ms Vander Kley said.
"By no means would I say that she’s perfectly behaved, ready-to-take-on-the-entire-world kind of dog, but the difference in her has just been outstanding," she said.
