Watch the reunion of a woman with her lost dog 1:47
(CNN) -
Drug addiction sabotaged Brayden Morton's life for five years.
Throughout that time, he tried to detox from fentanyl 16 times before succeeding.
So when he found the person who stole his beloved dog, Darla, and found out she was addicted to fentanyl, he knew what to do: pay for her rehab and help save her life.
In June, Morton was working at his home in Cranbrook, British Columbia, while Darla, a 3-year-old Chinese Shar-Pei, lounged on the deck sunbathing.
As he worked, Morton heard a loud noise followed by the sound of his door opening.
"I looked out the window and I didn't see Darla anymore. I went downstairs and out onto the terrace, Darla was gone, and I saw a blue Ford pickup speeding out," Morton, 35, told CNN.
Darla had been stolen.
When Darla was robbed, Morton's life stopped, he says: nothing mattered more than finding her.
"I didn't think I would get her back or see her again," he said, fighting back tears.
"I thought he would end up in a wrestling ring or worse. I thought he was gone forever."
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"I knew in my heart that this person had Darla"
Morton called the police immediately after Darla disappeared.
They advised him to start a search on social media.
He wrote a post on Facebook offering a $ 5,000 reward for anyone helping Darla return home.
It received thousands of clues.
Most, he says, were empty promises and attempts to get the reward money.
But then he got a clue that he hoped was real.
One woman said she had seen the same truck, an old-model blue Ford, and that it was parked inside a mechanic shop with a dog inside.
"So I drove up there and saw the truck and, to make a long story short, Darla wasn't there," Morton said.
"He was very upset and accusing towards the gentleman in the vehicle. At the time I was sure it was him, so he was not being nice."
But a day later Morton received a call from a blocked number.
"I answered it and all I heard was what sounded like a young girl crying," he said.
"I knew in my heart that this person had Darla. I told her that I was not mad at her ... and that I would take the reward money and go to her."
Morton called the police.
Despite his attempts to escort him to the meeting place, Morton decided to go see the person just so he wouldn't get scared and try to run away.
When he got there, the first thing he saw was Darla.
Morton's two dogs, Darla and Louis.
"As soon as I saw it, I ran over to it and grabbed it. It seemed too good to be true," Morton said.
"He was so happy to see me. We were so happy to see each other."
But then, looking at the young woman who had taken his dog, he says he recognized an old version of himself in her eyes.
"It was evident that she was hooked on drugs," she said.
"I gave him a hug and he said, 'Why would you hug a piece of trash like me?'
Morton told him, "I was addicted to drugs for years. I know what you're taking. I know what you're doing. I completely forgive you."
Instead of giving him the reward money, out of fear that he would spend it on drugs, Morton asked him if he could afford rehab treatment.
She said yes and they hugged and crying together.
Royal Canadian Mounted Police spokesman Sergeant Chris Manseau confirmed the story to CNN.
"They had a conversation and he got the dog back. They talked about a reward," Manseau said.
"The owner did not want to press charges against the person who returned the dog. That person tried to implicate others. However, we were unable to reach that conclusion."
Your own battle with drugs
Growing up in Red Deer in Alberta, where he was surrounded by people addicted to fentanyl, Morton became involved in gangs and drugs.
At 24 he was already addicted to fentanyl.
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After trying to detox 16 times, Morton says he gave up and tried to kill himself.
"I wasn't doing any good with my life. Everything was falling apart for me," he said.
"I had nothing."
At one point, Morton, who was also a drug dealer, was taken hostage, shot and stabbed, he says.
He escaped with a machete stuck in his head, he said.
After the doctors removed his machete, his only concern was getting out of the hospital and getting high.
"I needed to get high so I wouldn't feel bad. It's the worst fear of any fentanyl addict, trying to quit and face withdrawal symptoms," Morton said.
"That's where I was in life."
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Days after the incident, while walking home and passing by a pay phone, Morton remembered the phone number of Tricia Hedrick, a family friend who was also a drug rehab specialist.
"It was one of those moments that people always talk about, like God is trying to tell you something," Morton said.
"I walked over and dialed his number. When he answered, he said, 'Brayden, your parents think you're dead. You have to try to detox one more time.'
He planned to get on a bus the next day.
But the night plagued him with doubts, he says.
He thought he would never detox.
"I had a lot of alcohol, fentanyl and sleeping pills and that night I took it all. I told myself that if I didn't die and wake up somehow, I would go to rehab."
I don't know how or what happened, but I woke up. "
Morton says he quit drugs and never went back to them.
Paying for your rehabilitation and recovery
Despite his joy at being reunited with Darla, something inside Morton still felt broken.
After speaking with the young woman who had taken Darla, who asked to remain anonymous, Morton discovered that she had been hooked on drugs since she was 16 years old.
He had stolen Darla for $ 150 offered by people looking for a Chinese shar-pei, most likely for breeding purposes, Morton explains.
When he saw Darla's post on Facebook, he told her he didn't have the heart to do it and stole the dog back for himself.
Give her as a puppy.
"I was so happy to have my dog back, but my heart broke for this girl," Morton said.
"I was just so lost."
She called Westminster House, a residential addiction recovery program Morton often works with that treats young girls and adult women.
Susan Hogarth, executive director of addiction recovery at the rehab center, confirmed to CNN that Morton made a deposit to reserve a bed for the young woman and will pay for her medical and rehab treatment when she arrives.
"As soon as she shows up, she will be transferred to Westminster House for treatment," Hogarth said.
"She will be given immediate medical attention and medication to stabilize her. We work regularly with Brayden, who is incredibly supportive."
Although he told the girl that he had paid his admission to the rehab center and even bought his plane ticket there, she has canceled his admission to the center three times, Morton says.
"I did the same before," Morton said.
"It's not an easy thing to do, go to rehab, but I'm not going to give it up. She knows this offer will always be here, as long as she's ready to go, it's paid for and it's a done deal."
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That same day, while on his way home, Morton caught a glimpse of the blue truck and the owner he had mistakenly accused of robbing Darla.
Hoping to apologize, she stopped next to him.
"I came to apologize to you. I know you weren't the one who stole Darla," Morton told him.
To his surprise, the two quickly became friends.
The owner of the truck shared his own difficult story.
He had been left homeless after catching his wife having an affair.
He decided to leave immediately, taking his two dogs and driving aimlessly until he reached Cranbrook.
When the two said their goodbyes and Morton was exiting the parking lot, he made a U-turn, went back to the man, and told him to follow him to a hotel where Morton would pay him for the week.
"I just wanted to help him up again," Morton said.
With the help of some of her friends and their donations, they were able to pay her for one more week to stay at the hotel.
Now he's bought his own trailer and got a full-time job, according to Morton, who shared a photo of the two of them together on Facebook.
Morton remains in contact with both people who, according to him, taught him valuable lessons and reminded him how important it is to help people who have nowhere to turn.
"It was humbling and actually those people helped me too," he says.
"At that time I was going through some personal things and it was very emotional and they comforted my heart. I thank you," he concluded.
Drug addiction Fentanyl
