Rusty, an elderly pup, enjoying retirement life in Florida after rescue from home of 10 years

An elderly dog who was rescued from undesirable living conditions is now "living his best life" in Florida, following a big retirement bash.

Rusty, a Lab/Chow mix, estimated to be between 10 and 12 years old, was rescued by PETA 10 years after he was found being kept in isolation, chained in a pen, in North Carolina.

"For almost ten years, PETA fieldworkers visited Rusty, who was kept tethered 24/7 in a tiny dirt pen in North Carolina to bring him food, toys, and insulating straw during winter months; give him as much comfort and socialization as they could; and work to convince Rusty’s owner to allow PETA to find him an indoor home as a member of the family," PETA said in a statement to USA TODAY earlier this week.

However, Rusty's owner, who identity has not been revealed, refused to surrender the dog despite PETA's pleas and efforts. As a result, PETA officers did what they could by visiting him frequently with food, toys and treats, giving him lots of love and attention, providing him a custom-built wooden dog house, looking after his health and sterilizing him free of cost, Director of Local Affairs at PETA Rachel Bellis told USA TODAY this week.

"We're not law enforcement, so we're really only allowed to visit these animals as long as their owners will allow us to," Bellis explained. "We always pushed for surrender, and (asked the owner) to please give us Rusty, so that we can find him a home where he can live inside, but we can't legally take a dog unless the owner surrenders and signs them over to us."

Bellis said that situations like these are complicated and it's impossible to forcefully take away a dog from their owner, especially when there are no signs of extreme neglect or abuse as in Rusty's case.

"We did try, and we did help him a lot," Bellis said. "We tried to improve his life as much as we could throughout those years, and we were so happy when the when his former owner decided to surrender him to PETA."

The official added she believes Rusty's former owner "felt they were doing the best they could for Rusty and that they did care for him."

Persistence pays off

PETA's efforts took almost a decade, but their persistence finally paid off when Rusty's former owner agreed to surrender him and let the organization find him a new home.

"Fieldworkers took a page from Rusty’s book—he wasn’t giving up, and neither were we," PETA said in a post on their website when Rusty was surrendered earlier this year in July. "Our shared hardiness paid off."

Rusty was finally free from the chains and isolation and after a brief period in foster care, during which he had a joyful retirement party with lots of pupcakes, PETA field officer Chris Klug, drove him from North Carolina to his new family in Florida. Rusty's adopter, Hannah Caldwell, "had fallen in love with Rusty after reading about him on PETA’s website and couldn’t wait to help him spend his golden years romping on the beach and snuggling on the couch," PETA said.

'Living his best life'

Rusty is now "living his best life with his lovely new family in West Palm Beach, Florida," Bellis said.

"He's doing great. We receive photos from time to time, but we know that he is in the best possible home that he could be in, and we know that he is loved and cherished and respected, which is something that all dogs deserve," Bellis said. "It could not have been better. His adopters are absolutely wonderful."

Not all dogs are as lucky as Rusty: Highlighting the plight of chained dogs

While luck shone on Rusty and he was able to get his happily ever after, not all dogs are this lucky, Bellis said.

"It's so it's hard to comprehend," Bellis said. "I didn't know that dogs could be kept chained outside, like we see every single day."

Bellis said incidents of dogs being chained and kept in isolation are not just limited to a certain county or state.

"It's all over the country - keeping dogs outside, either on chains or just outside in small, enclosed areas," Bellis said. "It's a national epidemic, and we are inundated with calls from all around the country from concerned residents who have seen dogs outside in extreme weather, especially now when it's so cold."

Bellis said PETA has been working to educate the public through billboards, radio ads and social media and have also been working closely with local and state officials to tighten laws and ensure protection for pets and animals but there's "a long way to go."

While PETA, on its own, has been working to rescue dogs and other pets in distress, it's a tricky road to navigate and officers have to tread carefully, Bellis said, explaining that they are sometimes hesitant to report cases to law enforcement agencies to avoid irking pet owners, who can then deny access to the animals.

"We have to be very careful when we report to law enforcement because that could mean that we will never have access to that animal again if the owners find out that PETA reported them," Bellis said, adding PETA doesn't "want to bother law enforcement until we've hit a brick wall and there's nothing more that we can do, or if we find a dog that is in desperate need of being seized."

"We've had situations where we have called law enforcement and for whatever reason, the owner found out we reported them, and then they don't want us on their property again," she continued. "We can only be there if they (owners) allow us to be there, so we have to be very careful about when we report, because we might lose access to that dog."

In Rusty's case, PETA did report his situation to animal control, but didn't go down too hard because they had "a good relationship with the owner" and didn't want to lose access to Rusty, Bellis said.

"We hoped that at some point we would be able to gain custody of him," she said.

Report cruelty to animals

Bellis urged the public to be vigilant and observe their surroundings and neighborhoods, especially in harsh temperatures, for any dogs or pets that may be facing neglect or abuse.

"Anybody who is listening or reading this, be on the lookout," Bellis said. "If it's cold in your area, be on the lookout for dogs who are outside and might need assistance. We always urge people (to) never turn (their) back on an animal in need."

Bellis said people can help pets in distress by reaching out to local law enforcement or to PETA, which is available 24/7 and 365 days a year, per Bellis, and even has an afterhours pager system, or by even having a conversation with the pet owner to encourage them to move their pet inside, where it's warm and safe.

Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Elderly dog Rusty enjoys Florida retirement after rescue from NC home