A Dog That Wasn’t Able to Walk Was Adopted by a Couple, and Their Love Managed to Get Him on His Feet

Loyalty is often a trait that comes to mind when we think about dogs. That’s probably why we love them so much and why they’re often referred to as “man’s best friend.” However, strength is another defining characteristic of our 4-legged buddies who are willing to go through anything just to be with their loved ones. We often hear stories of dogs that didn’t have it easy from the start, and this story seems to be one of them. Fortunately, this one has a happy ending.

Bright Side is sharing the heartwarming story of a couple who turned a diagnosis around, and in doing so, saved and improved the life of a homeless dog. You’ll even get to see how he looks today, now that he’s loved by a family that knows why a dog will always be your best friend.

Doc is a 10-year-old German Shepherd. He was simply abandoned at a pet shelter because his previous owner was unable to provide him with the medical attention that he required. Unfortunately, this furry friend was unable to walk normally. He was diagnosed with degenerative myelopathy, which is a disease that, in addition to being extremely painful, basically means that a dog will be disabled for the rest of its life.

This is when Mckenzie and her fiancé come into the picture to save the dog that would later become a member of their family. When they found Doc, their instant connection and love made them think they could do something to give him a chance and improve his quality of life. They took him home and, contrary to what some experts thought back in the day, they decided that the dog deserved to live in a home that would give him as much love as possible instead of in a facility, subject to constant treatments.

Mckenzie was very moved. That deep connection she experienced upon seeing Doc for the first time was still there, and it developed into something like a friendship. It’s only logical then that she couldn’t help but feel devastated about the whole situation that Doc was going through. She decided that she’d go out, buy some nice food, snacks, and a few toys to make her faithful friend’s day extra special.

That afternoon, Mckenzie and her fiancé took Doc out to play with their other dogs. They decided to try and do something to help him walk. After all, if doctors couldn’t help, they had nothing to lose at this point anymore. They came up with a simple system that could possibly give some support to the parts of his body that had more difficulty withstanding pain. They tied Doc’s hip with a bandage to help support his weight so that he could move his legs. What happened changed the whole picture: the dog not only had the strength to stand but also to take a few steps. So in the end, Doc was actually able to walk!

Mckenzie called the vet to tell him the good news. For her and her fiancé, this made it pretty clear that Doc could actually recover and that his disease had a cure, even if it wasn’t permanent. And most importantly, Doc could actually have a longer life expectancy than what was previously thought. So they began practicing this bandage technique with him to see what the results were, constantly seeking to stimulate his muscles so that, bit by bit, he could move more.

Before long, the dog was not only able to stand, but also to walk and even run. Even if at first he still needed the bandages to be able to do all these things, he was soon able to move his legs on his own, without any help from anyone.

This is how Mckenzie not only gave Doc a new, better life, but she also managed to prove that everybody was wrong. Even the vets couldn’t help Doc and they had given up on him, but with love and perseverance, McKenzie and her fiancé managed to help him, even though it seemed impossible. Like we told you, this story has a happy ending!

Currently, Mckenzie and her fiancé are in the process of getting specialized halters to help give Doc’s hip more support. They even plan to look into getting a pair of wheels to help him move with more ease.

What did you think of this story? What would you do if you had the opportunity to adopt a dog with Doc’s condition?