Every dog deserves a happy home and warm place to lay his head.
Unfortunately, not every dog has that opportunity. Far too many of these sweet creatures are abused, neglected, or simply without a home.
That’s why we always love to see people stepping forward and changing that by opening their hearts and their homes to animals that are still looking for that loving family, as we saw with the sweet pup Felony taken in by her local police department.
That’s why we always recommend rescuing or adopting new pets when you’re looking for somebody new to add to your family.
Of course, sometimes you don’t get a chance, because they go ahead and adopt you first!
That’s exactly what happened to one family in Atlanta when they met the next beautiful addition to their home: a golden retriever named Bran who got a bit of a tricky start in life.
Scroll through the gallery below to learn Bran’s story and what he’s up to now!
Imgur user itsarave recently took to the online image-sharing platform to tell the story of Bran, a beautiful golden retriever.
Bran first found his family during a terrible flood in Atlanta, GA.
As the post describes it, "He was just sitting by a mailbox in the rain, looking pathetic. I pulled over and called him to me, he immediately came, wagging his tail."
But, sweet as this adorable boy was, he wasn't looking too good.
He was skinny and filthy, and, when they brought him to vet, proved to be badly affected by ticks, fleas, and worms.
They quickly realized that the beautiful dog had been living in the woods for months, and had likely run away from an animal-hoarding situation.
Note: The following picture may be disturbing for some viewers.
According to the post, after two to three days, they had pulled more than 200 ticks off of the pup.
He was 25 pounds underweight for his size, and had hookworm, ringworm, and heartworm.
His fur was also almost impossible to clean because of how matted it was, and had to be clipped before he could be clean.
But under all that dirt and grime was a dog with a sterling spirit and a heart of gold!
After just three days, he was already looking like a new man, and chipper to boot.
He's still mighty skinny, but he's on his way to filling out into a handsome, fluffy boy.
The pup was quickly christened Bran, and brought home to live with the family whom he adopted by that mailbox.
The family already had another golden, named Addie, and the duo took to one another instantly.
Bran had to be isolated for a while to make sure he didn't pass on any worms or ticks, but the pair struck up a beautiful friendship from afar.
Over time, Bran came out of isolation and was able to join his new family in body as well as in spirit!
He still had to wear a cone collar to keep him from fussing at a small ringworm sore on his head, but he seems to be in a pretty good mood regardless. No "cone of shame" here!
In fact, according ot the post, "He doesn't mind the cone one bit."
Once the cone came off, Bran immediately took to his new life like a duck to water — or like a golden retriever to snuggling!
Both Addie and Bran love a good cuddle, especially with their people.
Of course, when people aren't available, they're happy to cozy up to one another!
Six months into life at his new home, Bran is barely recognizable as the sick, skinny dog that they first found in the rising floodwaters.
In that time, he gained plenty of weight to offset his time in the woods, and is totally free of worms.
The vet estimates he's just about a year old.
If you loved seeing this sweetheart of a dog transform, make sure to SHARE on Facebook with fellow dog lovers!
