It’s practically an age-related cliche that once we reach our golden years, we tend to wake-up extremely early. This likely happens for lots of different reasons.
But one 90-year-old Grandma, and a late in life dog lover, has made it her mission to get up every single morning at 4:30, to cook for over 120 stray dogs that reside at her granddaughter’s shelter.
For most of her life, Kanak wasn’t a huge fan of dogs. In fact, she was completely convinced that nothing could change her mind. But what she didn’t anticipate was the way she would feel when her granddaughter, Sana, brought home a puppy. Within only a few short days of meeting and living with Coco, Kanak had a complete change of heart.
Suddenly, she found herself staring at him and thinking about how cute he was, which actually shocked her. She would watch him eat, sleep and play, and before she knew it, she was head over heels in love.
“Then I’d just love feeding him and messing around with him. He became such an important part of my life throughout the years that my days began and finished with him! He was right alongside me when I cut the cake on my 90th birthday. But, you know, my affection for Coco didn’t stop there; I began to like all dogs,” said Kanak.
Then, about two years ago, Sana was deeply affected by the loss of a local stray dog that she loved. In fact, the stray’s passing made such a strong impact, that she decided she wanted to start a shelter of her own.
“If only I had taken care of him, he’d still be alive today,” she said.
So a few weeks later, at a location near their shared home, Sanak opened a shelter for stray dogs. There, she cares for them and arranges medical care as needed. Because of her age, Kanak didn’t visit very often, and instead preferred to live vicariously through Sana. Though, it would hurt her heart to hear about their injuries, neglect, and need for love, attention, and good food.
After a while of hearing about the strays, Kanak decided she wanted to cook for them. So she started waking up at 4:30 every morning, spending hours cooking meals for the homeless pups. For two years, she continued to do the cooking and Sana would come home and show her pictures of the pups enjoying their homemade meals. She loved to see them enjoying her food, but her heart still ached.
So one day last month, she decided to go to the shelter herself. Since last year when she sustained a fracture, Kanak has been using a walker to get around, but she didn’t let that stop her! While the walk to the shelter was challenging, it was well worth it once she was able to meet the pups. She was overjoyed to handfeed the dogs, and to see their happy wagging tails.