Kai was an obese Golden Retriever who was about to be euthanized. He was so heavy that his previous owners opted for such drastic measures thinking it was the only way to end Kai’s misery.
Just by looking at Kai, any dog lover would be very excited to hug such a fluffy dog. But behind this cuteness was a dog living with a serious weight problem. Golden Retrievers are known to be a very energetic breed.
They are favored by hunters to retrieve hence, the name stood. This was not the case with Kai. He weighed over 160 pounds and because of this, he is a hundred pounds over the normal weight of a healthy Golden Retriever. This huge excess weight for a very active breed is too much for Kai and is taking a toll on his body frame especially his legs. His obesity prevented him from being an active dog. Instead of running around as most of his kind would do, Kai spent most of his time lying down.
His previous family felt that Kai was living in misery. They felt that the dog wanted to run around but found it very hard to do. And was oftentimes very exhausted even just from walking around the house.
They felt Kai was very sad. So the family went to a veterinary clinic to put Kai out of his misery. The vet was very hesitant to do what the family requested, and instead, called Misfits of Alberta Animal Rescue.
A gleam of hope suddenly pierced through clouds of grief after making the call. The timing couldn’t be more right when the animal rescue told the vet that a certain Pam Heggie was looking for a dog to foster.
When Pam Heggie saw Kai for the first time, she was at first hesitant if she can do any better than Kai’s previous handlers. It took the vet some quite encouraging words to finally convince Pam to do it.
When Kai was finally transferred to the care of Pam, Pam made sure that Kai’s diet had to be strictly observed. Pam also made sure that the dog should get enough exercise to get his respiratory system in good condition.
This new life Kai was experiencing was quite a sudden changed from his previous one. So it took a while for Kai to get his gears going. Through Pam’s effort and Kai’s determination, they made this endeavor to be a very consistent one.
They worked on this for about a year. It was a very long year but a very rewarding one. Kai lost around 100 pounds through the course of his rehabilitation. He was finally in weight where he really ought to be. Kai, who had once spent most of his time idling, is now an active dog.
Pam was so proud of this achievement and she couldn’t be much happier. She decided to adopt Kai for good. “It was like raising your own child”, she said and wondered how time flew. Pam Heggie thought about the experience as she shared it in an interview on Good Morning America.
If you would just imagine it, it was such an iconic event that a trip to a vet to get yourself euthanized was actually the very moment that your life would be saved. I am pretty sure Kai didn’t regret going to the vet that day.
Be inspired by Kai’s incredible transformation in this video below.
Source Rachael Ray Show via Youtube.