Paul Arceneaux, 83, used to sit in his wheelchair in front of the TV in his Nederland home with his 12-year-old chihuahua, Gabby, while he recovered from surgery.
"She helped heal him," his wife Mary said. "She never left his side."
Arceneaux, who suffered from painful diabetes complications in his toes and feet for several years, had his lower left leg amputated in March. He spent the next seven months in and out of rehabilitation facilities.