You never know what you’ll find in a thrift store, and one woman’s discovery has broken hearts across the internet.
As secondhand sales are increasing, with the global market for secondhand clothing predicted to reach $84 billion by 2030, according to Statista’s secondhand-apparel dossier.
Data from the Statista Consumer Insights survey also showed that up to 60 percent of respondents had made at least one secondhand purchase in 2020, up from 49 percent in 2019.
On TikTok, user @thevictorianmanor98, who lives in the United States, posts about the interesting items she finds while thrift shopping—usually antiques, unusual furniture and portraits. In a video posted on April 25, the TikToker shared her “saddest” find yet: a hand-painted ceramic dog-treat bowl that gives viewers a glimpse into the life of a seemingly once beloved dog.
In the video, the TikToker showed off the ceramic bowl, which had words such as “Lucy’s Treats” and “Lucy loves treats” painted on it.
The bowl featured, among other decorations, paintings of a yellow dog and bones. It also had Lucy’s paw-print impressions in purple paint.
The date July 15, 2009, can be seen on the bowl’s lid, suggesting that Lucy is either now a senior dog or has crossed the Rainbow Bridge.
In text that appears in the video, which has received almost 2 million views and 136,000 likes, @thevictorianmanor98 wrote that the hand-painted treat bowl was the “saddest thing” she had seen at a thrift store.
“Excuse me while I go cry for a dog named Lucy,” she added in a caption.
Newsweek has contacted @thevictorianmanor98 for comment via TikTok.
TikTok @Victorianmanor98
In the video’s comments section, TikTok users expressed their devastation at seeing the bowl in a Goodwill store, with one writing, “How can a family member, or anyone finding this, give it away?”
“WHY WOULD ANYONE GIVE THIS AWAY,” another added.
“Lucy knew the sound when you opened that lid,” a user wrote.
Another commenter said they would have bought the bowl and “kept Lucy’s memory alive.”
In a second video, the poster said she had returned to the store to do just that, showing the bowl on a counter and filling it with treats before giving one to her own Labrador puppy.
She wrote in the second video, “Lucy your love of treats is not forgotten.”
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to [email protected] with some details about your best friend, and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.