A family in the United States took in a dog named Dexter from a shelter several years ago. He turned out to be a very kind, sweet, cheerful creature. His owners loved him dearly and could not imagine life without him. However, after a couple of years, they almost lost him.

“An owner’s WORST nightmare, a freak accident,” Kentee Pasek, Dexter’s mom, told The Dodo. “Dexter escaped from the yard, and we were on search as soon as it happened, but he is fast. My husband Tim … found him running alongside the road. Dexter crossed the road right in front of a moving van. I got a call from Tim that ‘Dexter kinda hurt his front legs.’ When I arrived on the scene, it was WAY worse than I imagined possible. We live in the middle of the mountains and had to drive almost an hour for emergency veterinarian care. We were not sure he would make the trip, but he did, and his outstanding vet, Dr. Franklin, at the San Juan Vet Clinic saved Dexter’s life. Dr. Franklin credits Dexter’s determination to live.”

One day while walking, Dexter ran out onto the road and was run over by a car. As a result, the pooch lost his front leg. After treatment, he remained just as happy.
He began to learn to live on three paws – and to the owners’ surprise, he got used to it pretty quickly. Still, the same positive, kind dog delighted everyone around him with his ear-to-ear smile while skillfully running on three paws. Later he even learned another skill – to run on two paws, like a human.

“He was super happy just being alive,” Pasek said. “He was smiling, happy and positive. There were many days his attitude was infectious for the rest of us. He was happy just to be. One day I placed him outside in his kennel in the sun, and he was so happy to be outside, even as injured as he was. He just loved to be with us.”

This peculiarity made him popular on social networks – millions of web users paid attention to him. Everyone marveled at how much this cute creature loves life, in spite of the difficulties.
Now Dexter continues to enjoy life and gain fans – on Instagram there are already 70 thousand people who admire him every day. Indeed, sometimes we have something to learn from dogs. Be happy, Dexter!

“Dexter’s story is about adapting, changing and embracing a new normal,” Pasek said. “If we can remember how Dexter changed his life, I think we can too … This has shown me that even in our darkest, hardest times, we can overcome.”