Aging is an inevitable part of life. No matter how much we would like to avoid it, there’s just no getting around the fact that everybody gets old— including our furry companions.
According to YourOldDog.com, 1 out of every 4 dogs taken to shelters is dropped off as a result of old age. The article explains:
“This is perhaps the most shameless way to discard a companion imaginable; a surefire way of demonstrating the audacity of ‘pets as entertainment’.”
Too often we see older dogs abandoned after growing out of the puppy stage; no longer as tiny and playful as the days of their youth.
But once in a while, you come across people who value their pets until their dying day— and that’s exactly what Edie Mayo and Troy Griffin did with their beloved sheltie, Maximilian.
Edie, Troy, and Max (as he’s called for short) were discovered by KHOU producer Doug Delony as he was partaking in his daily jog through Discovery Green Park in Houston.
While Delony was there, he came upon a heartwarming sight. Delony snapped a photo of the scene, later describing the event in a Facebook post which has since gone viral.
The photo shows a man kneeling beside an elderly dog and an empty baby stroller. He is holding out a cup of water, lovingly tending to the 4-legged, furry senior.
When KHOU viewers came across the photo, they were moved by the anonymous man’s caring actions and demanded more information.
The news station complied, ultimately hunting down Edie, Troy, and Max to hear more about their story.
Max’s owners reveal that the dog is 16 years old. He is severely arthritic and has gone blind as a result of high blood pressure problems.
He has a section of the couple’s 10th-floor apartment sectioned off as his own territory, but he really “comes alive” during his daily walks to Discovery Green, reveling in the attention of “attractive female poodles”.
Every single day, Edie and Troy pack up the blind dog and wheel him to the park to enjoy the weather and socialize. Edie tells KHOU:
“I don’t think you should just turn your back on someone just because they’re elderly. I think they deserve our love and our care and our attention. And there is so much we can learn from them even as they get older.”
Troy and Edie garnered a lot of fans as a result of their caring devotion for Max. Although Delony’s post has since been deleted, as of June 8th, 2016, it had garnered over 490,000 views.
Unfortunately, Max the sheltie recently passed away in June of 2017, but we are sure he felt 100% cared for and loved right up until the very end.
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