Joon was found on 11 April 2026, in a cardboard box left on a street curb in Queens, New York.
NYPD officers investigated, but the case was later closed without an arrest. They took the small dog to the ASPCA Animal Hospital, where forensic veterinarian Dr. Alison Liu examined her. What staff saw first was not a clear face. Joon, a three-year-old Maltese mix, was so severely matted and soiled that she was hardly recognizable.
Hardly recognizable
“Joon had no injuries, but she was severely matted, with a soiled coat,” Dr. Liu said. “On her hind end, her skin was inflamed from prolonged contact with urine and feces. She was also underweight and somewhat fearful.”
Under all that dirty, tangled fur was a thin, frightened little dog who had been left on the street as if she were trash. The mats were irregular and filthy, stuck together with dirt and waste, not a coat anyone could have brushed out.
Staff sedated Joon so they could clip the severely matted coat, bathe her and treat her irritated skin. They also placed her on a gradual refeeding plan, so her digestive system could safely adjust to proper amounts of food.
Photos from that stage show Joon after the shave, and a pile of the matted fur that had been cut away from her body — a small dog, and a surprisingly large heap of what she had been forced to carry.
Learning to be a dog again
Because of her anxiety, Joon was moved to the ASPCA Recovery & Rehabilitation Center in Pawling, New York, a lower-stress place tailored to her behavioral and emotional needs.
At first she spent most of her time in a crate that staff put in her larger living space, so she would have somewhere to hide. “She was shut down and traumatized,” said Kelly Lewis, a care and enrichment technician, who had to carry Joon outside.
Within days, though, something shifted. Joon began to enjoy being outdoors. “She would get the zoomies and loved sniffing the grass,” Kelly said.
With treats, patience and consistent, gentle handling, Kelly slowly earned her trust. After several weeks, Joon started spending her days in Kelly’s office suite and also took well to a handful of other staff. She grew comfortable with affection and, by the end of her stay, regularly curled up in Kelly’s lap.
Staff left her collar and harness on during the day, to reduce how often they had to touch her, and took them off at night.
“She just needed to learn how to be a dog,” Kelly said. “But experiencing her rehabilitation is a tremendous feeling that will stay with me forever.”
Joon spent about five weeks at the Recovery & Rehabilitation Center. In that time she gained weight, learned that some people could be safe, and started to show a contented, affectionate side that had been buried under fear and mats.
The woman who wasn’t ready — until she was
That spring, Christina C., who lives in Queens, was grieving. Her 10-year-old Bichon/Poodle-mix, Benji, had died unexpectedly in May, and she was heartbroken.
“Everyone told me, ‘You’ll get another dog,'” Christina said. She waited until she was ready to love again. “I knew I didn’t want to buy a puppy. I know there are always dogs in shelters who need homes.”
Browsing the ASPCA website, she came across Joon. “I thought, ‘Everybody’s going to want her,'” she said. “But for the heck of it, I submitted my information.” Soon after, the ASPCA invited her to meet Joon in Pawling.
“A voice was saying, ‘Let me help heal your heart,'” Christina said. “I knew if I met her, I wouldn’t want to leave without her.”
When they met, Joon surprised everyone. “She bolted toward me,” Christina said. Staff told her that was not how Joon usually greeted new people. Kelly later said Joon showed the same positive, contented behaviors with her adopter that she had learned at the center — a sign the five weeks of careful rehabilitation had worked.
Home in Queens
Joon went home with Christina. She now lives in Queens with Christina, Christina’s mother Theresa, and two canine housemates, Sugar and Rocky. When Christina leaves for work, Joon has daytime company and playtime in the family’s backyard.
“She has gotten very comfortable with finding space on my lap, in my arms and in my bed,” Christina wrote. “As I write, she’s nestled into the blankets on my bed.”
“She has a great spirit,” Christina said. “I knew I’d fall in love with her when I saw her. Adopting her is the best decision I’ve ever made.”
Why Joon’s story matters
Joon’s case shows how quickly a small dog can disappear under a dirty, matted coat, and how much more than a haircut is needed afterwards. The clippers freed her skin. The quiet weeks in Pawling taught her that hands could be kind. A grieving person in the same borough where Joon had been left in a box chose not to buy a puppy, and gave her a lap, a bed and a family.
From a cardboard box on a Queens curb to a dog nestled in the blankets, Joon’s journey is a reminder that the dog under the mats is still there, waiting for someone to see her.
Story retold from public reporting. Credit: ASPCA. Images are the property of their owners and appear only with permission.
