The dog left behind because it was dead jumped into the arms of the man who saved it

news7g07/03/2022

4 2 minutes read

The dog left behind because it was dead jumped into the arms of the man who saved it

You’ll be hard-pressed to catch anyone leaving Super Bowl LI anytime soon.

The football game last February was the kind of game that was glued to the TV: The New England Patriots had an unprecedented comeback at the last minute.

And Mike Diesel is as big of a fan as anyone.

“It was the fourth quarter,” he told iHeartDogs. “And Brady just had his first comeback encounter and I was at a party watching the game.”

Then he saw something on Facebook and left the party with a few simple words: “I have to go, the dog got hit by a car”

Image source: Detroit Youth & Dog Rescue

The place where the dog lay dead is a 17-minute drive away.

Diesel got it in 13.

By the time he arrived, neighbors who heard the crash tried to get the dog into a box.

Diesel, founder Detroit Youth and Dog Rescuecaught him from there, carried the injured dog – wrapped gently in a blanket – into the car before taking him to the veterinary hospital.

The dog, who was soon named Knight Rider, abbreviated as KR, was a gracious patient, even if his life was just hanging in the balance. His temperature has plummeted. His leg was broken and dislocated.

But after two surgeries, KR had a historic comeback of its own.

That helped Diesel build a special barn that allowed the man to sleep with the dog for two weeks while he recuperated.

KR still has ways to go – and Diesel is trying raise funds for the medical treatment KR still needs.

In the meantime, he takes the dog to water therapy twice a week.

Steel pins and bolts seem to be holding KR together, along with an even more essential binder: his hero’s frequent visits.

When Diesel visited KR at his makeshift foster home this week, the dog, although muscles and bones were still tender, plunged into his arm.

“That surprised me,” he said. “It was the first time he did it.”

Diesel ended up missing the New England Patriot’s historic Super Bowl victory. Instead, he won the heart of a dog lying dead in the snow.

And every time he visits KR at his foster home, Diesel is raised with the most precious trophy on Earth: an incredibly grateful animal that will never forget the person who saved his life.