Eightyearold Owen Hawkins suffers from growth delay and poor eyesight. This 1 that Owen needs a wheelchair to get around. Not2 , he felt people were staring at him and that made him very uncomfortable, so he became lonely and even stopped going outside of his house. That, however, was all 3 Haatchi came into his life!
Haatchi had a very 4 start to life, too. Tied 5 a railway track when he was just five months old, the dog was hit by a train. The hit 6 his tail and a leg so badly that both had to be cut 7. Taken to a rescue shelter, the dog would have probably been 8 if his story posted on Facebook had not been seen by Owen's dad Will. He 9 in love with Haatchi and decided to keep him, 10 that they were helping him. It turns out that 11 was Haatchi who helped them. By always staying at young Owen's 12, he became the boy's best friend. Slowly Owen liked to go outside. 13 he goes, the dog follows and protects him. Owen now proudly walks around the neighborhood, showing14 his dog and telling anyone willing to listen to Haatchi's story.
Haatchi's 15 influence on the young boy has not gone unnoticed. In October 2014, the International Fund of Animal Welfare 16 him with a special award. The amazing friendship between the two has also been shown in a 17 short film called A Boy and His Dog by students from the filmmaking class at the University of Hertfordshire. It has won several awards and had almost 2 million 18. British bestselling author Wendy Holden has also written about this moving 19 in a heartwarming children's book, which was released on February 13th and has made Owen and Haatchi better 20.
