We all love our dogs and sometimes we love them a little too much. This can cause us to give in and feed them when they want to eat. But what the golden retriever’s former owner did was shameful. They tried to put him down because he was overweight.
Kai, a golden retriever, was taken to the vet by his former owner. The vet immediately contacted Misfits of Alberta Animal Rescue and Pam Heggie was immediately put in touch with the dog. Her goal was to help Kai find a home and lose the dangerous weight he was carrying.
Heggie respectfully accepted to give an interview to Good Morning America. The new foster mom did not know Kai and was not aware of what had happened in his past, but she knew he was in desperate need of unconditional love. Kai was the heaviest animal the vet had ever seen.
Kai weighed 172 pounds when he arrived at his new foster home. Since then he has lost more than half his weight. When Kai arrived at his new foster home, it took him 20 minutes to climb the small ladder outside.
Heggie immediately started walking Kai three times a day, in the morning on the way home from work and before bedtime. It was hard at first, but then it got easier and easier.
Heggie told GMA:
Vete said I would help him and that everything would be alright. He would take five or ten steps, then lie down and start breathing. But they kept going and every day he got a little stronger. Kai started water therapy to strengthen his back legs and increase his endurance.
Kai was put on a strict diet and became dependent on his foster mother to look after him, even though he was a hunting dog. Kai continued to gain strength and achieved some goals such as crawling in bed, walking around the block, climbing stairs and spending some time at the dog park. He is now a normal dog doing normal things like everyone else.
He doesn’t worry about yesterday, he doesn’t worry about tomorrow, he just focuses on what needs to be done today and does it. We have a lot to learn from dogs.
Heggie loved being an adoptive mom, so she adopted Kai. Her dedication towards Kai showed that with effort,patience and love any desired goal can be achieved.
Don’t hesitate to share Kai’s inspiring story with your loved ones.