Dogs have made headlines for ages displaying acts of heroism – they’ve warned families of house fires, fought off predators that could have harmed their humans, helped track down missing persons, and more.
Coco, adopted from Nate’s, is a headline maker, too. She was just a puppy when Jaelen spotted her within a litter. “The oddball” of the bunch it seemed to him. She caught his attention as he, his sister, and his mom were searching for a new member of the family.
Just a few months prior to their connection, Jaelen (an aspiring baseball player), was hit by a drunk driver. He doesn’t have much memory of the accident itself, but with a shatter pelvis, 17 surgeries, and 29 blood tranfusions, he did not know the long road of recover that was ahead of him. The once strong and talented athlete was starting the process of learning to walk again with the assistance of a walker.
Jaelen’s sister could sense his struggle and frustration and decided to do something to help – and off to Nate’s they went. Coco needed Jaelen to walk her, so walk her he did. At first, with his walker, and then after some time, with a cane. Finally, Jaelen was walking Coco unassisted.
One day, Coco escaped his house and Jaelen ran after her. Jaelen’s mom was yelling, “He’s running! He’s running!” as he chased after his dog. Sometimes, even in their mischief, dogs can give us exactly what we need.
Today, Jaelen’s spirits are high, recognizing how fortunate he is. Coco helped him walk (and run) again, but she also helped him find the joy he thought he lost in the accident. Sometimes true heroism is just being there, every day, alongside those we love.
Not only do we here at Nate’s absolutely LOVE Jaeln and Coco’s story, but it was also selected by PetCo Love as an award winning story submission, providing Nate’s with a $50,000 grant to help us get closer to our goal of completing construction on the new campus. Apparently Coco’s heroism extends far beyond what anyone could have expected!
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