Gavin Crowsley is a driver for UPS. He covers hundreds of kilometres every work day, going from houses to facilities and vice versa. It’s all part of the job. Likewise, with all that distance he covers, he sees a lot of other stuff on the road.

However, this sight he ran into was far different. On one of his delivery days, he caught sight of a gangly, malnourished dog on the road. Its skinny, bony legs carried it along while all its ribs were visible.

It looked almost like a skeleton with some skin draped over. No muscles or fat or anything. The poor thing was clearly starving and dangerously underweight

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Gavin had a delivery vehicle with him already, so naturally he used it to bring the dog somewhere where it could find food and treatment. He found him just at the right moment too. Who knows if the dog would have lived that much longer if Gavin didn’t run into it.

He took the dog to Clay County Humane Society , and Crowsley’s initial assessment of the dog’s breed was that it was a Dalmatian.

They later discovered that it was, in fact, a Great Dane. An incredibly and dangerously neglected and underweight Great Dane

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Great Danes are known for their impressive size. Most people don’t need to be told how big Great Danes are. We’ve all seen how a famous, fictional Great Dane, Scooby-Doo scales up to Shaggy and the rest of the Mystery Gang.

In fact, the average weight of a Great Dane is over 100 pounds. They outweigh even some adult people, and their height at the shoulders and head is quite tall. Although this Great Dane was barely 70 pounds,

With love, care and a lot of time, Phoenix the Great Dane made an outstanding bounce back. Now he weighed 160 pounds

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It emphasizes how underweight the dog was to know that it was missing around 50 pounds of what it should’ve weighed. Malnourished animals are, sadly, all to common to see wandering around the streets.

Often, it’s because their owners neglect them or they were born on the streets with little food. Phoenix is only one of probably millions of neglected, starving pets.

After his recovery, a woman adopted Phoenix and he took the role of a therapy dog for nursing homes

He visited numerous homes during this time. After being helped himself, Phoenix’s new job was to help other people. A visit from a big, friendly dog can do wonders for anyone whose spirits are down.

Phoenix was deaf in one ear, and blind in one eye. Nonetheless, his transformation was amazing and it’s hard to believe that it’s the same dog who barely had any muscle on him just before.

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It was 7 months after his rescue when they crossed paths again, and likewise, Gavin couldn’t believe his eyes either

Gone was the malnourished, suffering dog from 7 months ago. In his place was a 160 pound, happy and healthy dog. His new owner took great care of him, and Phoenix could now have the life that every dog deserves.

Although Phoenix wasn’t young. He was no puppy when Gavin found him in 2013. The canine was a senior already by the time he recovered and met the UPS driver again.

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On March 12, 2019, Phoenix passed away from old age. The last 6 years of his life were happy, all thanks to a chance encounter with a UPS driver

His owners couldn’t hold back tears when he passed away in their arms. Still, they knew they gave him all the care and love he needed in the 6 years he was with them. They never knew how old he actually was, but guessed he was over 10 years old when Gavin found him.

Phoenix isn’t the first pet to be rescued from neglect, and he certainly won’t be the last by a long shot. Countless animals get neglected and abandoned by people everywhere, and most of them aren’t as lucky as Phoenix.

If you plan to keep a pet, make sure that above all, you can give them the life they deserve when you signed up to take care of them.

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Source: [IHeartDogs, Phoenix Fighters Facebook]