It's always awful to read about animals that are suffering in some way. Daisy's story is particularly hard to hear: This poor dog from Texas, USA has a disproportionately large body in comparison to her legs and head.
Since her weight is too much for her legs to carry, she's spent most of the past years lying flat in her kennel.
No one knows where Daisy came from or what her history is, but she's lived in a private shelter for nearly 5 years now.
We're not sure why she's been kept for so long in this terrible condition. Her stomach is covered in wounds from lying down in one position for so long. She rarely walks or rolls on her side.
Daisy's original caretaker was diagnosed with cancer and all of the animals held at the facility had to be distributed to nearby shelters. The animal protection organizationForgotten Pet Advocates (FPA) found out about Daisy. Since her entire body had suffered from her obesity, she required special treatment. Amy Beasley, a member of FPA decided to take her in, but even her transportation was a challenge.
Daisy really didn't want to walk at all, so multiple helpers had to carry her.
"We aren't sure how much she weighs and we can't just take her to the vet in the car," said Amy. "So, the vet will have to come to her and take her blood and do some tests."
Moving was very confusing for Daisy. Even though she was going to a better place, she'd lost the only home she'd known for a long time. She seemed unsure of herself, stopped eating, and kept to herself.
Then Amy got an idea: Her dog Mikey did really well with scared dogs. Mikey took Daisy under his paw, protecting her and showing her that she can trust humans.
And it worked: Daisy started feeling a lot better in Mikey's company and allowed Amy to touch her. No one could believe Daisy's waist size - 44 inches!
But why is it that Daisy's so huge? Is it just from her laziness? The vet was initially unsure, but guessed it had to do with a hormonal irregularity.
Nowadays, Daisy gets up on her own every morning and confidently nuzzles her owners. She adores her best friend Mikey. And finally the vet was able to discover the cause of her large midsection:
Daisy suffers from hypothyroidism, a dysfunction of the thyroid. Now that the cause is known, Daisy can finally get the medicine she needs and hopefully make a full recovery - she's earned it!