Bulldog once used as bait now helps boy with anxiety

BATTLE CREEK, Mich. - An American Bulldog has a new purpose in life after beginning training to be a therapy dog for a family in Michigan.

, bulldog Jay provides support for the Grimes family, which includes a 6-year-old boy with ADHD and Sensory Processing Disorder. Kristy Grimes says Jay has been affectionate toward her, her husband, and her three boys, helping to calm down 6-year-old William when his anxiety gets the best of him. It's a problem that has been exacerbated by the recent death of William's grandmother.

But now William has Jay.

Jay's life could have turned out much differently. Animal rescue volunteer Hilary Spala says Jay was used as a bait dog in a fighting ring. She says they found residue from duct tape around her muzzle. She says this was so other dogs could be made to attack her during training without having to deal with Jay fighting back.

“We found her on the side of the road with a broken weighted chain around her neck that she had clearly gotten lose from,” Spala told Fox 17.

The Grimes family adopted Jay three weeks later and is currently training to become William's therapy dog.

See more of Jay's story at

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