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In August, we decided to get a playmate for our first dog. We drove about half an hour to this small shelter and picked out our perfect little baby, a black Lab. When we took Nismo home, we saw that he was covered in fleas, and his fur was all types of matted and dirty.

I couldn't bear the thought of my new fur baby being mistreated, so we stuck him in the bath and kept bathing him for an hour and a half. We thought that was the worst of our problems.

We took him to the vet a few days later, only to find out that our boy was very sick and on the brink of death. Our vet didn't think he would last the night. She told us that he had tapeworms and he was too sick to survive.

She took him home and watched over him for the night. After many medications and blood transfusions, they gave us the option to put him down. I refused to believe that he was going to die. I told them I wanted to wait until the morning to make that call and to give him one more night.

When we came to see him the next day, he looked healthier and happier! Now, six months later, he is just a happy, bouncing 50-pound Lab that loves to give kisses.

I couldn't imagine a life without our Nismo.

Story submitted by an anonymous user from Greenville, North Carolina.

This story was originally shared on The Animal Rescue Site. Share your very own rescue story here!