Meet the cute 'wobbly' dog living his best life after recovering from brain injury
Adorable video (click to play above) shows Billy the whippet bouncing excitedly around on the beach, and playing with his canine friends - after he made a miraculous recovery from a serious brain injury.
Billy - who has his own social media following and a book - was just two when he ingested something which contained Neospora caninum parasites, impacting his ability to walk. The deadly microscopic parasites attack an animal’s brain and spinal cord - slowly shutting down their body.
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Hide AdBut seven years later the brave Billy has made a miraculous recovery with the help of his beloved owner Chris Cooper, 40. Chris, an animator and illustrator from Rochdale, said: "We didn't know what it was at first.
''It was only a chance encounter with a third vet who suggested he have an MRI scan. He was so poorly and descending rapidly - they took spine fluid from him and then they told us what had really happened. The uncertainty was the worse part - a relief to get a diagnosis."
Billy was put on medication for two weeks - and the vets informed Chris his dog was either going to improve or get worse. He explained: "There was a fifty per cent chance he would respond to antibiotics - as the disease was only recently acknowledged."
Billy could not walk at this point - but Chris was determined to give his pup the best chance of survival. He decided to embark on strength building, incorporating more whole foods into his diet and giving Billy little challenges each day.
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Hide AdChris explained: "Routine was the best thing we could do for him: I had a neighbour who worked with stroke victims, and they recommended keeping a healthy routine. It was a delicate journey to get him off mediation and repair his damaged nervous system.”
Chris says his beloved whippet is a ‘brave dog’ and a ‘hero’. Whilst Billy was in recovery, Chris set up a social media account for him (now at over 50k followers) - and had designed an illustrated book called 'Billy Whippet' and the sequel 'Billy's Art Studio' - which Chris describes as "heart-warming stories of support and courage".
You can follow Bill's journey here: billywhippet.com
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