Bronson was one of nine puppies born to a Chocolate Lab mama via c-section. When the Lab’s humans saw that the tiny pup had a cleft palate, they decided to euthanize him.
Smol puppers (aka puppies) with cleft palates don’t have the best chances of surviving.
Vet tech, Redditor, and Imgur user KaffeKalle explains why:
Depending on the severity of the cleft, and if it affects the hard or soft palate, puppies usually do not thrive. The space in the roof of their mouth does not allow them to suckle properly, and they eventually die of starvation.
She posted a picture of Bronson’s cleft palate to Imgur:
Bronson didn’t know he was born different. He only knew that he was a pup who wanted to love and to be loved. A fellow vet tech convinced Bronson’s family to sign the puppy over and then KaffeKalle took Bronson in as her foster dog.
At the time, this “chocolate bean,” as KaffeKalle calls him, was smaller than a chocolate milkshake!
He is SO tiny!! Can you even?
KaffeKalle fed Bronson via a feeding tube every 1-2 hours for one week. After that, she realized that this little guy might survive. She took him with her to work every day so that she could pay extra attention to him and keep up with his needs.
Bronson continued to get stronger as the weeks went by and his foster mom fell more and more in love with him. She, like so many fosters before her, completely failed – she adopted him!
Pretty hard to blame her for her epic failure, isn’t it?
She taught Bronson the ways of the world – like how stuffed toys make the best friends and the best pillows.
She taught him how to sit.
She took him shopping and taught him the value of a dollar.
Bronson’s also made a lot of new friends.
This pupper who so many expected not to survive, sometimes helps out his mom on the job.
Today, he’s a happy dingus with awesome best friends and one doting and loyal mom who would do anything for him.
We’re so happy that KaffeKalle and her fellow vet tech took a chance on Bronson! He’s proof that we (yes, not just dogs, but us humans, too) can overcome perceived challenges. We can thrive, be adorable, sniff butts, and chase our tails.
High paws to everyone involved in helping Bronson to live a happy and healthy life.
Please don’t sniff anyone’s butt if you’re a human. That’s weird… like, really weird.
