We all love our pets, and sometimes we love them a bit too much. We could give in and feed them every time they ask for something. Having said that, the previous owner of one golden retriever committed a horrific act. They tried to put him down because of his weight.

The former owner of Kai, the golden retriever, took him to the veterinarian. Pam Heggie was reunited with the dog shortly after the vet called Misfits of Alberta Animal Rescue. They wanted to help Kai find a place to live and lose the dangerous weight he was carrying.

Heggie gave an interview to Good Morning America. Kai’s new foster mother had no idea who he was or what had happened to him in the past, but she knew he required a lot of attention. “Anything you do would help that dog,” the veterinarian said, referring to Kai, who was the heaviest animal he had ever seen.
When Kai initially arrived at his new foster family, he weighed 172 pounds. According to blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com, he has dropped more than half his body weight since then.

It took Kai 20 minutes to climb the small set of stairs outside of his new foster home when he first arrived.

Heggie started taking Kai for three daily walks: in the morning, after she got home from work, and before bed. He struggled at first, but things grew easier for him with time.

“He literally walked five to ten feet, then he’d lay down and start panting,” Heggie explained to GMA. But they persevered, and each day he pushed a bit harder. We walked to the driveway of the next-door neighbor, then to the driveway of the next-door neighbor.”

Kai began aquatic therapy to strengthen his back legs and increase his stamina.

Kai was put on a strict diet, and despite his chowhound tendencies, he trusted his foster mother to take care of him.

“He knew I was going to help him, and we’d be alright,” she stated.

Kai continued to develop strength and accomplish numerous goals, including as getting into bed, walking around the block, climbing the stairs, and running at the dog park.

“When I look at him, I forget how broken he was,” Heggie commented. “Now he’s just an ordinary dog like the rest of them, doing typical dog things.”

Heggie had so much fun being a foster parent that she chose to adopt Kai.

Because of his remarkable transformation, he was featured on Good Morning America.

“He literally shows you how to complete a fairly enormous assignment one day at a time,” Heggie explained.

“He doesn’t ponder about yesterday or tomorrow; instead, he focuses on what has to be done today and gets it done.” Dogs can teach us a lot.”

Peggy, you did an excellent job!