Now Dennis weighs 12lb and has had three skin-removal procedures

In 2013 he weighed 56 pounds, but when Brooke Burton, of Columbus, Ohio, adopted him she put him on a diet and took him on walks

Once a wanton wiener dog, Dennis the miniature dachshund went on a diet and is now a happy shadow of his former self after losing more than 75 per cent of his body weight.

Less than two years ago, Dennis weighed in at a whopping 56 pounds — about the size of four or five miniature dachshunds.

A series of 'before' photos show Dennis resting on rolls of fat, his head seemingly too little for his blob of a body. He couldn't take more than a few steps without being out of breath.

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In this June 2013 photo, Dennis, a dachshund, rests on the ground in Columbus, Ohio. Less than two years ago, Dennis weighed in at 56 pounds and could walk only a few feet without stopping, out of breath. But then Burton rescued him from his previous owner and provided him with a proper diet, exercise and affection

pictured on February 25, Dennis now only weighs 12 pounds and can freely play in the snow. He has had three skin-removal surgeries to remove the folds of excess skin

Then Brooke Burton adopted him from a relative who had fed him White Castle burgers, pizza and other human food, and didn't pay much attention to the dog's burgeoning belly.

Burton, a 26-year-old nursing student, recalls how emotional she became when she first saw Dennis in June 2013, and then persuaded her relative to give him up.

'Out comes Dennis, and I couldn't believe it,' Burton says. 'I wasn't even sure what breed of dog he was supposed to be because he was so large.'

Burton put him on diet of dry dog food, plus lots of walks and affection. Now the 6-year-old wiener dog is a svelte 12 pounds and happily chasing squirrels in the backyard, playing fetch and bossing around the other three rescue dogs that live with him.

'In the beginning, you could tell he was very depressed, that he really didn't feel good at all,' Burton says. 'He didn't have much of a personality. After he lost weight, this bossy little demanding man popped out. He's into everything, he wants to play with everybody.'

Dennis lost so much weight that he started tripping over the folds of excess skin that were left over and getting infections.

He has had three surgeries at the Ohio State University Veterinary Medical Center to get rid of it.

The operations cost more than $2,800 together and were covered by a GoFundMe page set up by Burton, donations from individuals and the OSU Veterinary Medical Center, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

Dr. Kathleen Ham, the veterinary surgeon who performed the operations, says Dennis' story is a good lesson for pet owners who might feed their animals too much.