Shelter Dog Meal Donation Count:

3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
6
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
Learn More

GONE VIRAL: Dog says goodbye to his owner

By: Justin Palmer

Justin Palmer

Justin Palmer is a Certified Pet Food Nutrition Specialist and co-founder of iHeartDogs.com. Inspired by his rescued husky, Splash, he dedicated himself to learning about extending both the length and quality of her life. Splash lived and thrived until 18 years old, and now Justin is on a mission to share what he learned with other dog owners.Read more
| December 24, 2013
Pin

mike-petrosino-and-rusty

 

When Mike Petrosino was in the 8th grade, he was diagnosed with cancer and given only a 3% chance of surviving his first year. Miraculously, Mike survived another 8 years, but after the amputation of Mike’s leg, and 4 separate bouts with cancer, it seems the end is near.

4 days ago, while visiting his friend Mike in the hospital, a Reddit user posted a photo of Mike saying goodbye to his longtime family dog Rusty. The photo has since gone viral online, capturing the intense and emotional bond between a dog and his owner. It's not often that a dog must say goodbye to his owner, rather than the other way around. The family has created a fundraising page to help pay for the medical costs associated with Mike's care. UPDATE: We've just learned that Mike is now leaving the hospital to travel home for Christmas to be with his family at his own request. It seems that Mike and Rusty will in fact be together until the very end. Please keep the Petrosino family in your thoughts and prayers this holiday season.

SHARE this story

Sources: Huffington Post, Reddit, GoFundMe  

Recent Articles

Interested in learning even more about all things dogs? Get your paws on more great content from iHeartDogs!

Read the Blog

Leave a Comment

Loading Checkout...

United StatesClose
Flag of United States
Powered by
duty and tax information for United States

Looks like your ad blocker is on.

×

We rely on ads to keep creating quality content for you to enjoy for free.

Please support our site by disabling your ad blocker.

Continue without supporting us

Choose your Ad Blocker

  • Adblock Plus
  • Adblock
  • Adguard
  • Ad Remover
  • Brave
  • Ghostery
  • uBlock Origin
  • uBlock
  • UltraBlock
  • Other
  1. In the extension bar, click the AdBlock Plus icon
  2. Click the large blue toggle for this website
  3. Click refresh
  1. In the extension bar, click the AdBlock icon
  2. Under "Pause on this site" click "Always"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Adguard icon
  2. Click on the large green toggle for this website
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Ad Remover icon
  2. Click "Disable on This Website"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the orange lion icon
  2. Click the toggle on the top right, shifting from "Up" to "Down"
  1. In the extension bar, click on the Ghostery icon
  2. Click the "Anti-Tracking" shield so it says "Off"
  3. Click the "Ad-Blocking" stop sign so it says "Off"
  4. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the uBlock Origin icon
  2. Click on the big, blue power button
  3. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the uBlock icon
  2. Click on the big, blue power button
  3. Refresh the page
  1. In the extension bar, click on the UltraBlock icon
  2. Check the "Disable UltraBlock" checkbox
  1. Please disable your Ad Blocker
  2. Disable any DNS blocking tools such as AdGuardDNS or NextDNS

If the prompt is still appearing, please disable any tools or services you are using that block internet ads (e.g. DNS Servers).