When Michael Chour found the dog on the side of the road in Thailand, he was skinny, dehydrated and couldn’t even walk. It looked like the dog was close to death.

Chour, who is originally from France, has been living in Thailand for over 13 years, caring for hundreds of street dogs. So when Chour found this dog, whom he later named Chack Chack, he knew he had to help.

He asked some locals about Chack Chack, and they told him that he’d originally come from a local dog meat farm. When the Thai government enacted an animal welfare act in 2014 that made the dog meat trade illegal, the farm shut down, and Chack Chack was set loose. A man briefly adopted Chack Chack, according to Chour, but he ended up abandoning him.

From then on, Chack Chack lived on the streets, getting the occasional meal from a villager. But without regular, nutritious food and veterinary care, Chack Chack got sick — so sick, he lost his mobility.

“People were afraid of him,” Chour told The Dodo. “He couldn’t walk. He was dying.”

Chour was cautious when he approached Chack Chack — he didn’t know if he was friendly or not. But Chour quickly realized that he had nothing to worry about.

“I saw in his eyes that he just needed me to help him, so I took him in my arms,” Chour said. “He was in too much pain to eat, but he drank a lot. I just stayed for hours with him on my lap.”

Chour also took Chack Chack to a vet, where he was treated for dehydration and malnutrition. The vet also diagnosed Chack Chack with cerebral ehrlichiosis, a disease that was affecting his nervous system and preventing him from walking.

Neither Chour nor the vet were certain if Chack Chack would survive — but with several rounds of medication, and lots of love and attention from Chour, Chack Chack managed to recover.

And now Chack Chack is devoted to Chour.

“This dog has a way to win your heart,” Chour said. “He listens to all you say. He is so calm yet so strong, and he just pushes himself to me and stays so close.”

Chour keeps about 45 dogs in his home, but he doesn’t have room for Chack Chack or the 500 other street dogs that he feeds each day. But Chour has placed Chack Chack in a secure foster home.

“His foster is a farmer who leaves home in the morning and comes back in the night,” Chour said. “He is really a poor man who lives in a wooden home, but Chack Chack sleeps inside.”

Chour may not be able to live with Chack Chack, but Chour visits him every day, and always brings him a hearty meal of dry dog kibble, rice and vegetables.

“Chack Chack just waits every day at the same spot for me to arrive,” Chour said. “I spend a lot of time with him because I have a special love for him. I just want him near me always.”

And sometimes, it’s hard for both Chour and Chack Chack to say goodbye.

“He always tries to come with me on the motorbike to go home, and it breaks my heart to leave him there,” Chour said. “One day, my shelter will open and I will then always have him near.”