Dog was locked in barn for 6 years — now see his transformation after he gets a haircut

In September 2016, a Great Pyrenees named Lazarus walked on grass for what was reportedly the first time in his life. For the roughly six to seven years before that, he had been confined to a single barn stall in southwestern Virginia, according to Big Fluffy Dog Rescue, the Nashville-based group that took him in.

A Dog Nobody Was Caring For

Lazarus’s owner was terminally ill and unable to continue caring for him. A neighbor, concerned about the dog’s condition, reached out to groomers for help. When rescuers reached his stall, waste that had built up over years had to be cleared with a shovel just to open the door, according to Big Fluffy Dog Rescue’s account of the rescue.

Lazarus’s coat, meanwhile, had never been trimmed. Years of unmanaged growth had left his fur matted into a single, heavy mass covering his entire body — so dense that he could barely walk.

35 Pounds Of Fur, Gone

Groomers, including Candice Skelton, took on the job of shaving Lazarus down. It wasn’t simple: the coat was so matted and overgrown that it took a team of people working together to remove it safely.

When they finished, they had removed roughly 35 pounds of hair — more than 15 kilograms, or close to a third of what many Great Pyrenees weigh in total. Underneath it all was, for the first time in years, a visible, recognizable dog.

Learning To Walk Without The Weight

The transformation wasn’t just cosmetic. Carrying that much matted fur had limited Lazarus’s mobility severely; after the shave, he was able to walk — and soon run — in ways that hadn’t been possible before. He also had to relearn basic movement without the extra bulk he’d been dragging around for years.

Big Fluffy Dog Rescue noted that Lazarus had additional health issues to work through, including a broken tail and some growths that needed veterinary evaluation, on top of general unsteadiness tied to his long confinement.

Adjusting To A Life He’d Never Had

Beyond the physical recovery, Lazarus faced something arguably just as difficult: learning what ordinary life, and ordinary human contact, actually looked like. He moved in with foster volunteer Amanda Brooke Charsha-Lindsey, who documented his progress and asked followers to focus on his future rather than dwell on his past.

Early updates described him as timid, which wasn’t surprising given his history, but steadily more comfortable in his new surroundings — including, eventually, enjoying a steak dinner as part of his recovery.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long was Lazarus kept in the barn? Roughly six to seven years, according to Big Fluffy Dog Rescue, which took him in after a neighbor alerted groomers to his condition.

How much fur was removed from him? About 35 pounds (roughly 15 to 16 kilograms) of matted, overgrown fur was shaved off during his first grooming session.

Why couldn’t Lazarus walk properly before his haircut? The sheer weight and density of his matted coat restricted his movement, and prolonged confinement in a small space had also affected his mobility and balance.

What happened to Lazarus’s previous owner? According to reporting on the case, the owner was terminally ill and unable to continue caring for him, which was part of why he had gone without care for so long.

Who took Lazarus in after he was rescued? Big Fluffy Dog Rescue, a Nashville, Tennessee-based rescue group focused on larger dog breeds, placed him in foster care with volunteer Amanda Brooke Charsha-Lindsey.

Did Lazarus have other health issues besides his coat? Yes. Rescuers reported a broken tail and some growths requiring veterinary evaluation, in addition to mobility issues from his years of confinement.

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Sources: Big Fluffy Dog Rescue (via Amanda Brooke Charsha-Lindsey’s public Facebook posts), WTKR, Action News Jax, Fox LA, Laughing Squid, and Yahoo News UK.