A blind service dog meets his new friend

Meet Smiley, a magnificent dog that is so much more than a beautiful Golden Retriever.

A blind dog

Smiley lost the use of his eyes at birth, but this didn't prevent him from obtaining his Service Dog certificate.

Today, Smiley has new challenges to face, notably that of training his new colleague, Pal.

Joanne George is the woman that saved Smile from a puppy farm over a year ago. She tried to find him a family, but no one wanted him because he needed special attention due to his handicap. She therefore decided to keep Smiley, and is totally dedicated to helping him. Now she has finally succeeded.

An unexpected first meeting

Last summer, Joanne was looking through her newsfeed on social media when she came across a post talking about a dog in Turkey. This dog was, just like Smiley, born blind. Joanne immediately fell in love; "My husband looked at me - he was next to me on the sofa - and I was in tears because I knew exactly that this dog should come here to be our pet."

The adoption was approved and Joanne and her family welcomed the five-month old puppy with open arms. In addition to Smiley, Joanne also had a Border Collie called Pippi, who was also blind.

The poor puppy could not have possibly found a better home. Pal was scrutinised at all times when he arrived to Joanne's home. He was extremely thin, sometimes aggressive and frightened when the other dogs approached him.

"He was like a bear. Luckily, Pippy and Smiley are very tolerant, understanding and calm. It took him one day to realise that the dogs weren't going to harm him," explained Joanne.

A new hope

After six weeks, Pal had made a lot of progress. During this time he learned what Smiley had learned in 6 months. Unfortunately, after this, Pal was diagnosed with a bone disease called hypertrophic osteodystrophy.

Pal therefore had to go through hydrotherapy, chiropratic therapy and a course of medicine. This treatment helped Pal hugely, and Joanne is confident that Pal will make it. She knows that by Smiley's side, Pal will become a marvelous service dog who will help many sick children.

We have high hopes for Pal, and we hope that all the love his human and canine family will help him to get better soon.

Source : iheartdogs