The only thing worse than abandoning an animal is abandoning them when they’re a baby. Puppies and kittens are a lot more dependent on their owners, as they haven’t yet learned the life skills around how to take care of themselves. Animals get themselves into all sorts of situations, and speaking from experience of having to rescue our kitten from a near-death situation on more than one occasion, the thought of leaving them out in the streets by themselves is simply horrifying to us.
But that’s exactly what happened to one puppy who was found on the streets of Coventry, UK.
He’d been left to fend for himself, and the poor little guy was so emaciated, his rescuers weren’t sure if he’d make it. But luckily, this story has a happy ending – as the dog was rehomed and went on to play a very important job in his new owners’ wedding!
Back in September 2015, The RSPCA took the Greyhound/Saluki mix into their care after he was found walking helplessly through a U.K. neighborhood
. They named the tiny dog William, and heart-breakingly he weighed only 6.5 pounds and was described as “a walking skeleton.”
“He is the thinnest dog I have seen in the 10 years I have been an inspector,” said RSPCA Inspector Nicky Foster in a story by Daily Mail. “You can see every single bone in his body.’
Although the pup was too weak to stand, amazingly he managed to pull through, and within no time he was on the road to recovery. Shortly after being rescued, William was adopted by Rachel Butler. Over the next year and a half, he settled into a comfortable life at her home alongside her 11-year-old West Highland terrier, Harry.
William was fed, loved, and cared for, and the little dog soon wasn’t so little anymore! William now weighs 24 pounds – that’s five times the weight he was when he was rescued!
In a touching post, the RSPCA shared pictures of William happily settling into his new home as well as a ‘before’ picture to show what he was like when he first arrived at the shelter. They said:
“When lurcher puppy William was brought to us, he had been starved for so long he weighed just 7lbs – one sixth of a healthy puppy’s weight. He couldn’t stand, and every bone showed through his coat. But, thanks to your gifts, we could give him all the expert care and love he needed to recover from the cruel neglect he had suffered. Look how happy he is in his new home!”
But the happy news wasn’t over yet!
Rachel was getting married to fiancé Chris Mallett- and she had a very important job for William. He was going to be her ring bearer! The dog-lovers tied the knot whilst ensuring that their two pups were very much involved in the day, and they have the pictures to prove it.
“When he was brought into the RSPCA’s care he was close to death,” Rachel told the Sunday People. But on our wedding day his tail did not stop wagging. Having William at the ceremony made us both feel so proud at how far he has come.’
We’re so pleased that William got the happy ending he deserves!
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