A weakened puppy was found lying flat on the grass by a group of friends in a park at Oklahoma who were taking their dogs. They noticed that the puppy had several missing patches of fur and looked skinny. A few moments later, the pup noticed the group. He got up and followed them around.
The group decided to bring him along and took the puppy straight to the veterinary clinic to get a check-up and be scanned for a microchip. Unfortunately, he didn’t have one. The group then kept him for two weeks, creating posts about him online and trying to search every site or place they could think of with the thought that someone is missing him. All went to a dead end. Soon, they looked for a new family to take care of him and they did.
A couple by the name of Katy and Jacob Bywater knew the group who found the puppy and are in search of a puppy to adopt. The group and the couple knew nothing but all they knew was that puppy is meant to be for the couple.
The Bywaters then welcomed and named the pup Strider into their family. He was very timid and showed little to no interest in playing for a couple of weeks. At around ten weeks old, he was brought to the vet and his breed was determined to be a Red Heeler and Beagle mix – medium to large frame but not too large.
The Bywater’s claimed that by the time Strider turned 6 months old, he almost weighed 40 pounds. They figured he must not be a beagle, but they were sure he was a red heeler because of his physique and color. They bought a DNA test kit and discovered that while he is what they thought he was- a red heeler, the pooch is also a Great Pyrenees. The news did not change their minds about him; he is still very much a part of their family. At 8 months, he is about 50 pounds and looks like he’ll get bigger and bigger by the day.
Strider’s new parents were surprised but still didn’t change their minds. More months have passed and all his fears and shyness started to fade and his true colors began to surface. He had grown into a confident, goofy dog who loves to run around, playing tug-of-war and roughhousing on the couch or bed with his parents. He became spoiled and very loveable and always slept with them every night and whenever he gets the chance.