#Wolfgang the overweight beagle drops 61 lbs. and finds home

Extreme Makeover: Dog Edition.

A once-obese beagle named Wolfgang got an early start on his New Year’s Eve resolution by getting healthy, making the necessary lifestyle changes and losing over 60 pounds.

The doggo weighed 90 pounds in 2019 when he was first fostered by lawyer Erin McManis and her husband Chad Schatz. Now he weighs 29 pounds.

The two shared on Wolgang’s Instagram a side-by-side transformation pic of his weight loss.

“Throwback to my first Christmas with my family in 2019; I was about 60 pounds, and my starting weight was 90 pounds. This year, I’m 29 pounds and I’m getting ready to complete my 5k on Christmas Eve.🎄🎅🏽🦄🎄🎅🏽🦄,” the caption read.

“I’m a little nervous for the 5k, but Dad said that if I don’t try, there is a 100% chance I won’t be successful. Also, sometimes just trying is succeeding. I’ll keep you updated on how I do, as this has been over 30 months in the making,” it continued.

McManis recently spoke to People about Wolfgang’s health journey, explaining that she and her husband started fostering animals in 2009.

“He was just a super-friendly, happy-go-lucky dog,” McManis, 39, said about the first time she met Wolfgang at a shelter. “He couldn’t fit through our existing dog door, so we had to get a special, extra-large dog door for him.”

McManis put the beagle on a high-protein, low-calorie diet that consisted of ground turkey meat and vegetables. “He was surprisingly mobile for his size,” she said, while also adding that he got tired after walking 20 feet.

Her husband started taking him for walks to their mailbox and started to slowly increase the walking distances over a period of six months. Because the couple lives in Phoenix, the summers are blistering hot. Therefore, Wolfgang had to either go on walks early in the morning or late at night.

“The vet told us his heart and organs had to work extra hard to support his weight, and he could suffer from heatstroke if he was in the sun too much,” McManis said.

McManis and Schatz only wanted to foster Wolfgang, however, he was too “sweet and friendly” to be let go. The pair decided to fully adopt him in the long run.

While he also has a lot of loose and extra skin that stemmed from his weight loss, his parents have decided not to remove it.

“Chad and I feel passionately that morbid obesity is a form of animal neglect,” McManis explained. “Allowing a dog to get to be 90 lbs. when he should be 25 or 30 lbs. is a form of abuse. We try to advocate and educate when we can.”

Wolfie is now able to fit into doors and be as active as he can. And when he’s an extra-special good boy, McManis and Schatz allow him to have a “couple of licks” of a Starbucks Puppuccino.