Acts of Kindness
Family takes turn sleeping next to senior dog who can no longer climb stairs
He's getting stronger every day, because he knows he's loved.
Maxim Sorokopud
01.22.21

When dogs get old, they need extra care. Spike has been with his owners for almost a decade. Luckily, they’ll do anything for him.

Spike Morris is an English Springer Spaniel who just so happens to live in England. Nowadays, he has a loving family, but things weren’t always so good for Spike.

Facebook - Catherine Morris
Source:
Facebook - Catherine Morris

He was born in 2006. Spike’s family members don’t know too much about his early years, but they must have been hard.

They know that Spike got rescued in 2012. Of course, by then, Spike was fully grown.

But when the Morrises saw Spike for the first time, they knew that they had to take him in.

Facebook - Catherine Morris
Source:
Facebook - Catherine Morris

At first, the family had a few house rules that they wanted Spike to follow. But Spike had other ideas.

They intended to make Spike a downstairs only dog. In fact, they even installed a baby gate to stop him from getting up the stairs.

But on the first night in the Morris home, Spike kept on whining for the humans. Then he ran and leaped over the gate.

Then he made his way into his new owners’ bedroom. He then leaped onto their bed and got comfortable.

Facebook - Catherine Morris
Source:
Facebook - Catherine Morris

The Morrises soon got used to having Spike on the bed. Sure, it was against the rules, but Spike really needed to have company in the night time.

“He loves to snuggle up and tries to push his way under the covers to get as close as possible.” – Catherine Morris.

For the next eight years, everything was well in the Morris home. Catherine Morris grew up with Spike, and they became the best of friends.

Eventually, Catherine left home for college.

And then something bad happened to Spike.

In 2019, he suffered from two strokes. Luckily, the vets were able to save Spike’s life both times.

But understandably, Spike was weak. For a long while, Spike couldn’t walk. His owners had to carry him from place to place. Yes, this was hard, but they were happy to do it for their beloved dog.

And then, slowly, Spike started standing up on his own legs again.

Over the next few weeks, Spike learned to walk once more. Everyone was relieved to see Spike back on his feet. They realized that the dog was gonna hang around for a while yet!

The big problem was that Spike wasn’t allowed to climb the stairs. This would have been too much of a strain on his body.

So for the first time since 2012, the Morrises reinstalled the baby gate. But Spike wouldn’t be spending his nights alone.

Facebook - Catherine Morris
Source:
Facebook - Catherine Morris

Instead, each night, one family member sleeps on the sofabed snuggled up next to Spike.

For a while, it was just the parents of the family alternating with Spike. But then Catherine came home from college and took shifts sleeping next to Spike.

Of course, Spike will always need to take it easy from now on. But the Morrises are amazed to see how much of a recovery he has made. Hopefully, Spike will be sharing the sofabed with one of his owners each night for a long time yet!

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