The statement that a dog is a man’s best friend is very well-known. However, the strong bond between a hooman and his doggo can only be truly grasped when witnessed.
Luckily, today’s story will show us just that.
Rescue Mission
Luke rescued Franky over a decade ago from a hurricane that hit New Orleans, Louisiana.
Because the storm started making a lot of landfalls, many animals became displaced and in search of a new home. Luke saw this as the perfect opportunity not only to gain a new friend, but also to save an animal in need.
As he lived halfway across the country, Luke got in touch with a local New Orleans rescue after seeing an adorable pup on their website.
Feeling a connection with this puppy, Luke decided to adopt him. The pup, whom he named Franky, boarded the next flight to Ohio where Luke was living.
“I remember picking him up and hugging him and kissing him and saying ‘You are home, I’m your daddy’,” said Luke.
Now, almost two decades later, Luke and Franky have been inseparable. Even though Franky is now fifteen years old, deaf, and has arthritis, he never gave up on his puppy personality.
Even when he was at his rescue, Franky was initially called Playful, resembling his happy and loud personality.
I already had a name picked out, but a year later I remember saying, I should have never changed his name because Playful was perfect.
Senior Doggo
The cause of his deafness isn’t known. Franky’s vets believe that he might have suffered from some kind of a mini stroke, causing him to lose his hearing.
The sad thing is he loved music. He preferred Bach, cello music in the morning. I would play it for him every single day. And when it was playtime, I would always play a song called Ride of the Valkyries, an opera song by Wagner. I would turn that song on and even if he was sleeping he would flip his head up and take off running to his playroom and grab his toys.
Franky was also very happy whenever Luke would speak to him. He even learned many words and commands, making it seem like he knew how to speak.
However, because he can no longer hear, Franky relies on physical contact now.
If he doesn’t see me right away he’s like ‘Where’s dad?’ So I try to give him some kind of physical contact just to give him comfort.
Franky loves being surrounded by fellow hoomans as well as other dogs. Every time he meets somebody, he has to go right up to them and greet them with a big kiss and hug.
If he doesn’t get to go up and say hi, he gives me that look like ‘What’s up dad? What are you doing?’ So, I’m trained. People enjoy it. I’m like ‘Hey nice to meet you. This is my dog. Can you please pet him too?’
As Franky got older, he developed more of a soulful look. But, even at 15 years old, this senior pup is still very healthy. This is probably due to Luke making sure that Franky got his daily activity throughout his life.
Best Friend
Apart from Franky, Luke rescued another dog named Dino. He was a very anxious dog since he had lived on the streets for the first 9 months of his life.
However, after he met the happy-go-lucky pup, Franky, his condition improved drastically. He was no longer scared and withdrawn, but a doggo who loved living life.
Even though Dino has gone to a better place, Franky and Luke will forever have him in their hearts.
Final Word
Franky became such an important part of Luke’s life. Throughout their years together, all they made were memories filled with love and adoration for each other.
I don’t remember life before Franky and I don’t want to imagine life without him. He’ll always be my child and he’ll always be here even 20, 30 years from now, he’ll always be here.