Christmas miracles really do happen, it seems.
A while back, Sumey and David Hageman’s four-year-old dachshund, Lola, slipped a disc, crippling her. Her owners had recently bought a house, and therefore couldn’t afford the $6,000 surgery Lola needed to walk again.
“When Lola came to us, she was completely paralyzed in her back legs, so she was dragging both of the back legs, and the cause of that was a slipped disc in her spinal cord,” said veterinarian Michael Wong to the Miami Herald.
Unable to pay for their pup’s surgery, the heartbroken couple was forced to give their dog away to an animal rescue group.
The decision, of course, was not easy.
“We had to do what was best for her,” said Sumey Hageman, who knew that his family would lose visitation rights with Lola once she was turned over to the animal rescue group.
When he learned of the family’s plight, Wong decided he had to do something. Before performing the surgery pro bono, he asked the animal rescue group if he could return Lola to her family when the surgery was over.
They agreed.
“I was doing the surgery, and it came to me,” said Wong. “I wanted to give them their dog back.”
Last week, Sumey and David visited the rescue group, thinking that it’d be just another simple visit, but when they arrived, Wong greeted them not only with Lola dressed in red and green bows, but with the amazing news.
“This is the best Christmas gift I could’ve gotten,” said Sumey.
David expressed similar joy, saying he’s absolutely thrilled to have Lola back home with their two-year-old son, in time for the holidays.
“I can’t imagine having to make that kind of decision,” said Wong. “Basically it’s having your whole family back together for Christmas.”