Barely skin and bones, this emaciated dog was abandoned on a street and left to die.
As the Rottweiler, called Tiny, lay in the pound, his carers thought he had given up hope.
But a British owner took him in, helped him recover, and now this once decrepit animal
has won the title of 'Best Dog'.
These staggering images show the miraculous transformation he made after
he was picked up from a Taiwanese dog's home by Sean McCormack.
Mr McCormack, 46, said: 'When I first saw Tiny he was big, clearly very sick and, we were told,
aggressive so we we agreed to take him in.
'At first, I thought he was a mastiff, because he was in such a bad state that it wasn't clear to me
what breed he really was.
'But my friend Jeff, who has two very lucky rescued Rottweilers, knew right away that Tiny was a Rottie.
'His progress was slow but obvious to see, and he turned out to be one of the lucky ones who don't relapse into full-blown mange from time to time.'
Despite fears Tiny was an aggressive animal, he was 'one of the sweetest' animals they had encountered at The Sanctuary.
Dr. Yang at YangMing Veterinary Hospital in Taipei was the vet who helped with Tiny's recovery.
Mr McCormack said: 'Dr Yang is the one to thank for Tiny's amazing recovery, though we also believe that the natural,
happy environment we provide and the healthy, raw diet we feed all our animals played their part in his speedy recuperation.
'We knew we could cure him, but were astounded at what a fantastic dog had been hidden beneath the disease
and depression that riddled him when he first came in.'
More than 300,000 people logged onto the RSPCA's Facebook page to vote for Tiny in The Ruffs awards.
Mr McCormack said: 'We are all over the moon that Tiny was crowned Grand Champion of Ruffs 2014
and hope it serves as food for thought for all those rescue organisations that kill animals like Tiny
in order to "end their suffering".'
Mr McCormack, originally from Folkestone, Kent, moved to Taiwan 15 years ago
and set up The Sanctuary to look after unwanted animals which are unlikely to be rehomed.
He cares for feral cats, pigs which outgrew apartments they were kept in,
orphaned baby squirrels, and lots of dogs, once-aggressive or fearful, blind and disabled.
But The Sanctuary is now facing an uncertain future after its landlady told Sean
she wants to sell the property which is home to 200 rescued animals.
They face the prospect of being made homeless.
Mr McCormack added: 'We are starting an IndieGoGo campaign and hoping to use Tiny's story
and Ruffs victory to help bring international attention to our plight.
'We're looking to buy a beautiful 2.5-acre site to give our dogs, cats, pigs, rabbits, squirrels,
pigeons, hedgehog, budgerigar, and, very soon, deer a permanent happy home.'
