Obie, America’s famous obese dachshund, has found himself in the middle of a custody battle between his foster care provider, Nora Vanatta, and the Oregon Dachshund Rescue group, which claims to be his rightful owners.
This pudgy pooch recently weighed in at 77 pounds and is now required to wear a harness so his body doesn’t drag the ground. It’s only a matter of steps before the poor thing is worn to pieces. Obie has made several TV appearances, including one last month on the TODAY Show. He’s also currently on the top of the Yahoo search list.
Nora Vanatta is a former veterinarian technician from Portland, Oregon and is currently taking care of Obie, doing what she can to reach him to the goal weight of 40 pounds.
According to Vanatta, he’s already lost 15 pounds. It wasn’t long after taking Obie into her care that Vanatta fell into puppy love with the pooch. She even created a Facebook page that tracks his weight loss, which now has more than 66,000 fans.
Vanatta has been accused by the Oregon group of “wrongfully” holding the dog and using him to get famous, and even pocketubg donations sent in for his care. But the caretaker contends that she’s in no way taking advantage of her new pet. “The money just sits there because he may need to have surgery to have his excess skin removed,” said Vanatta. “You know, we just don’t know where, what he’s really going to need.”
The Oregon Dachshund Rescue is claiming that Obie is a dog, not a celebrity. Their hope is that their lawsuit will convince the judge to allow Obie to be returned to their care, which is where they believe is his rightful home. The judge will make the call this Monday, October 29.
Controversies have stirred on Twitter as to whether Obie should stay with Vanatta or return to the group. Where do you think he belongs?
Keep Obie the Doxie with the woman who loves him and is getting him healthy!! #saveOBIE
— Barb (@RealLVHouseWife) October 24, 2024
He’sgetting healthy where He is #saveobie
— MrsFrancisca Salomao (@MrsSalomao) October 25, 2024
Also Read:
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Should Parents of Obese Children Lose Custody?
*Photo from babble
* Quote from abcnews