All I Had to Do Was Love Him Out Loud

The story of King, the paralyzed dog who stole our hearts.

On January 22nd I got a message on Instagram.

“Would you ever consider fostering a dog in a wheelchair? This guy needs help.”

Attached were two photos of a brindle French Bulldog named King. One photo showed him in his wheelchair, gazing up at the camera. The other showed him with his legs splayed out behind him and his bottom teeth poking out.

The answer, of course, was yes. I had never fostered a paralyzed dog but I had a soft spot for the “undesirables”, as they’re sometimes referred to in rescue. Senior dogs, dogs with health issues, dogs with special needs. It was never something I intended to pursue, but once you stumble into dog ownership with your own special needs dog it just sort of… happens. Don’t get me wrong, I love a bouncy, healthy puppy – but looking at these photos of this dog had my heart tripling in size.

I immediately emailed the rescue, Rescue City, and told them I was interested in fostering this wheelchair dog. I went through a process of getting approved to foster, and by the time it was all sorted out they had already sorted the dog’s foster home too. I was devastated.

A few months went by, and we welcomed other foster dogs who we loved and cherished and, ultimately, found perfect homes for. Life moved on. More dogs were saved.

And then, on April 1st, an email: “Any way you can watch King? We’re looking for a temporary foster.”

I emailed back immediately.

A few days later, Jacob and I rushed to our car after work. It was down pouring – coastal flood warnings alerting our phones with shrill, deafening pings. We briefly asked ourselves if this was even a good idea, if we should even be venturing out into the Manhattan streets, but the thought of King pushed us through. We drove slowly through flooded streets and over foggy bridges, heading toward the little dog who needed us.

King met us in the lobby with his current foster, greeting us with kisses and little jumps. After a quick diaper changing tutorial, we loaded up our car with his supplies – wheelchair, diapers, wipes, food, etc – and we were on our way.

King melted into our life seamlessly.

Within seconds of entering our apartment he was in the toy bin, pulling fluff out of a stuffed bunny. He gave Simon a few licks, and that was that. King was here.

His arrival was not without a few small hiccups, of course.

Our first diaper changing experience was comical, both Jacob and I bickering over which part goes where. We were like new parents to a newborn baby, completely unprepared and overwhelmed. King, a normally patient and relaxed dog, got annoyed with our 20+ minutes of problem solving and decided to start a game of bite-y hands. Eventually we got it, four hands flying to keep each part in place. It’s safe to say the process has gotten much easier for all three of us.

This week with King has been filled with laughter, naps, and lots of wheelchair walks. Everyone who sees him walking down the street smiles. Everyone who meets him falls in love.

On Sunday we took the dogs to the beach, not knowing what to expect. I did some research beforehand and saw that it was fine to take wheelchair dogs to the ocean as long as you thoroughly cleaned everything afterwards. I figured it might be difficult for King to walk on the sand, but thought it was worth a shot anyway.

And would you believe my surprise when as soon as we got there, my sweet, paralyzed, brave foster dog ran straight to the water.

King spent the afternoon running into waves, splashing in the cold saltwater. His black nose was covered with sand, his wheels soaking wet. A true picture of resilience, of unencumbered joy.

I’m just going to say it – letting go of this dog is going to be very difficult.

But here’s the beautiful thing, the power of King and the internet and all of you – King sat without any adoption interest for months, likely judged by what people perceived to be a difficult dog. Since we’ve had him, King has gotten multiple adoption applications, being processed and reviewed by Rescue City as we speak.

Letting go of a foster dog you love is never easy. I have already cried at the idea of no longer falling asleep to his distant snores in the next room.

But the fact that all I had to do was show King, really show him, for him to find his family, warms my heart. All I had to do was love him out loud.

So here’s to King, the boy who stole our hearts. May he find his forever family very, very soon.