To say that Khaleesi was skin and bones when she was rescued would be an understatement.
It’s mind-boggling to even fathom how a being could be so malnourished and survive.
But she did, thanks to the folks at Mutty Paws Rescue in Palm Beach County, FL.
Mutty Paws rescues dogs who are in danger of being euthanized and helps to rehabilitate and home severely abused dogs. It’s estimated that about 1.5 million shelter animals are euthanized each year, and about 1 million animals are abused or killed in instances of domestic violence. But these aren’t the only instances where animals suffer harm.
Thankfully, there are people like Michelle and Don who foster dogs in need to start them off on the road to the new life that they deserve.
“I saw a dog who was really skinny at the shelter,” Michelle told The Dodo. “I was like, ‘Oh my goodness. We need to help her!'”
When Don and Michelle took in Khaleesi, they took great care of her. They gave her a clean pair of cute pajamas to sleep in and fed her 3 oz. of food every 30 minutes.
“Never, not one time was it [adopting] on my mind,” Don said. “The only deal I made was I will help nurse this dog.”
And that’s exactly what he did.
But little did he know that he was just setting himself up for failure… foster failure. It’s when you foster a dog and end up falling in love and adopting them instead.
“Of course, you’re cheering every time there’s progress,” Don said.
Khaleesi was so frail and weak that she couldn’t even stand up at one point.
So, every step she was able to take was a win. The stronger that she got, the farther away Don would place her food to build upon her strength.
Khaleesi had Don and Michelle cheering and encouraging her every step of the way. She also had the help of another very important person.
That person was Michelle and Don’s pitbull Sonny.
Khaleesi began to follow Sonny around and do everything he did. But this 70 lb. pit bull knew that he couldn’t play with Khaleesi as he did with other dogs his size.
Don says that he was “as delicate as he could be” with his foster sister.
“He just literally laid and was like ‘OK, if you can’t get up, I’ll just come to next to you.’ He chose to lay on his back next to her so he could play with her because she couldn’t stand up,” Michelle recalls. “Sonny is her emotional support dog.”
The stronger Khaleesi got, the more they were able to run and play together.
They love to play tug-o-war with their toys.
This helped Khaleesi a lot with strengthening her back.
When Khaleesi was healthy enough to be adopted, it was obvious that Michelle, Don, and Sonny weren’t going to give her away.
“Once we finally agreed to adopt, I probably cried,” said Michelle.
They got her a big ole’ celebratory cake, which she devoured. But not without sharing some with her big bro Sonny.
“They’re just good family dogs. If their lives or their stories could help change people’s perspective [about pit bulls] that would be a win,” said Don.
Learn more about Khaleesi’s amazing transformation in the video below.
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