Sometimes, career wisdom comes from the oddest of places — for instance, from the life and struggles of Obie, a dachshund who once weighed 77 pounds.
(Photo Credits: Obie’s Facebook Page/Flickr)
With the help of owner Nora Vanatta and an Oregon veterinary clinic, the 7-year-old pooch has dropped 50 pounds. Vanatta adopted him last year, after a local rescue announced online that they had a severely overweight dog in need of a home — and help.
“He arrived on August 18 and to my astonishment he was a dachshund and he actually weighed 77 lbs,” Vanatta told the Daily Mail. “He is extremely sweet and loving. He was obviously loved and is a joy to work with. The aging owners just couldn’t say no to those big brown eyes. But we are thrilled to be able to help him, and now [he is] moving on with his new life.”
What can we learn from this leaner and meaner wiener dog? (Sorry. We are so sorry.)
A few things:
1. Doing things the right way is more important than doing things quickly.
Vanatta, who has a degree in Animal Science from Colorado State University, put Obie on a healthy diet, on which he has gradually lost the weight over the course of eight months. He’s also had in-patient care at a local clinic. No fad diets or starvation for this puppy.
The same goes for your career. Don’t be discouraged if success doesn’t happen overnight. Keep plugging away and you’ll see results.
2. Ask for help.
Obie’s owner solicited donations over PayPal to help defray the costs of his care. (Not without controversy, but she says all monies were used for Obie.)
Folks who are reluctant to network often feel like they’re asking for handouts when they investigate new job opportunities and professional connections. Don’t let this be you. Learn from Obie, and ask for a hand when you need one.
3. Use social media to your advantage.
Vanatta and Obie have appeared on “The Today Show” and “Live With Kelly and Michael,” among other media outlets, but their true success is more grassroots. Obie’s Facebook page currently has over 100,000 likes, and is still growing.
Social networks like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn give us the chance to create our own brands and promote them. Make sure your profiles are camera-ready.
Tell Us What You Think
What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received? We want to hear from you! Leave a comment or join the discussion on Twitter.
why do people have to be so angry? the bottom line is a young doxie’s life was SAVED and now he is living a happy life surrounded by active family and other dogs. Not many would take that challenge and Nora did. Kudos to her and all she did to get the job done. Nothing else matters. The rest is just non-issue. Stop the negative and angry comments. Take some yoga classes and release your anger in a positive way.… Read more »
I see that the ODR trolls are alive and well. We know it is them because they are repeating the lies that were made up by them. Envy and jealousy are so sad.
Wow, @CasualObserver. You certainly make a lot of assumptions. . . like that the people commenting here are even looking for jobs. They might have just seen an article about Obie and came over to criticize. . . not necessarily the best use of anyone’s time, but no indication that they don’t have jobs, that they didn’t study, that they spend too much time on social media, etc. I could go on and on, but really, you spelled “penance” as… Read more »
LOL!! I’m just noticing that the comments are obviously off track… however it’s poignant in another way. I find myself asking “if all these commentators can’t seem to even stay on focus long enough over a simple parable, how can they stay focused over a typical 9 hour work day?” No wonder they don’t have a job (just my guess)… My job search advice to them would be to stay on task; get on and off of social network sites… Read more »
Too bad the ODR lemmings have to pee on every article about Obie and the good that has come of this… Good read on the article.
Wish you the best Nora , Obie, Noggin & Hunter too….
She feeds the dog FREE crappy food. She probably starved him so he would loose the weight. Fools.
I would love for this woman to show us her “expenses” for this dog. Putting a dog on a diet does not cost thousands of dollars. Her claims? She needs to be transparent. Why is she still showing a paypal account on her facebook page ? She is still accepting money from people because I sent her a “small” amount to see if she still took money. She does. She is unreal. Why is it that people do not see… Read more »
FYI Look at the details NORA never spent a cent on this dog…everything was handed to her for FREE so please tell me where did all the money get spent on really..who ever writes these article maybe should do their god damn research…everything even the dog food was FREE..and till this day she never adopted OBie she took him she was a foster for the rescue but when the money started comin in she booted them off the FB page… Read more »
Check out Obie’s page for all the info about his diet. It’s in the notes section on his Facebook page
I live in Phenix City, AL and I own a female “Obie” – her name is Heidi and I am her 3rd owner. She is the sweetest dog but has the same problem as Obie. After she was spayed, she gradually gained weight. I do not know what she weighs now but she is too big !!! When we go outside she loves to run but is panting when we get inside. Can you tell me about the diet Obie … Read more »