LB usually fostered a lot of animals. So, when she heard about this special needs Great Dane puppy weighing about 2 pounds, she decided to help him. A breeder had brought him to the vet to be put down. The reason was that the puppy had been born with all four paws curled over like a ballerina’s toes.
The vet had called the rescue center, and LB immediately took the puppy in. She was ready to save him. The foster mom raced against time to fix his feet as he grew big too fast. Every pound the puppy grew was another pound to be held on those feet that could not bear the weight. At 5 weeks, he was 2 pounds. Walking became more and more difficult.
LB decided to name him Forrest after Forrest Gump. The goal was to make the puppy run. When Forrest was 8 weeks old, he was 12 pounds. She started emailing every vet, every orthopedic she knew. He was growing very fast. Finally, when he was 10 weeks old, he was 16 pounds. However, it was always the same answer. She knew that eventually, the dog would be in a lot of pain.
After the word was spread wide enough about Forrest, many people told LB to contact Lumen. The dog Lumen was born with similar deformities as Forrest 5 years ago. The dog was brought to the same vet clinic in Tijuana to be put down. Luckily, she was adopted right away and had many social following. Her moms were able to find her a vet who could fix her paws through surgery.
After talking with Lumen’s parents, LB realized that Lumen and Forrest were somehow related. Forrest was lucky to have this long-lost sister who paved the way for him. Lumen’s mom connected LB to their vet at Oregon State. So, all of them took a road trip to San Diego, California & then to Eugene, Oregon, to meet Lumen’s vets.
LB was fully prepared to live in Oregon for two or three weeks. However, Forrest went to surgery right away. He needed surgery on all 4 paws. The foster mom had to leave the dog in Oregon for a while to recover. However, Forrest had an entire team of fosters. A part of that team was Lumen’s family. Forrest and Lumen were excited to be with one another.
After 5 months at the vet’s, the foster mom came to know that she could bring her dog home by Christmas. Soon Forrest was home. He had grown 5 times his size, but nothing changed when he reached home. But, Forrest had one more person to meet. Tyler, LB’s boyfriend. They met through volunteering at the rescue. About a week after Forrest came home, Tyler met him for the first time. The two bonded instantly and became best buddies. Soon Tyler adopted the big goofy Great Dane.
If you liked this, share it with a friend.
