A shelter dog’s special field trip outside the kennel has touched people’s hearts online as the break from the stressful environment gave him a chance to showcase his personality.
Duke, the 2-year-old Labrador mix, was brought in as a stray by an animal care and control officer to the Montgomery County Animal Shelter (MCAS) in Conroe, Texas. Duke has waited patiently for an adopter to come forward for over 290 days. At one point, he thought his forever family came forward, but that unfortunately fell through, Courtney Gawel, live release manager at MCAS, told Newsweek via email.
However, that hasn’t stopped Duke from holding onto hope. Gawel said he constantly greets potential adopters at the front of his kennel. If that wasn’t enough to lure his future family in, the personality he showed during his recent field trip will surely do the trick.
A video posted to Facebook on Monday by the animal shelter highlighted Duke’s field trip where he got to go on a walk outside, explored Lowe’s, and received a well-deserved pup cup. While on the trip, Duke showed he is a calm and composed dog. He loves receiving scratches, has great leash manners, is nonreactive to other dogs, and is extremely gentle around children.
Montgomery County Animal Shelter Texas/Facebook
The field trip showed Duke’s true personality. The MCAS wrote in its post that Duke usually appears crazy in the kennel since he is cooped up all day. But as soon as he was out, he was a different dog when away from the stresses of the shelter.
“Our foster field trip program is very popular in our area and we have several volunteers and foster families that take dogs regularly on day trips or even overnight trips,” Gawel said.
Field trips like the one Duke went on are very beneficial for shelter dogs as they are an excellent stress reliever for dogs, according to the website BeChewy. It also gives dogs one-on-one attention which is hard to give animals packed in overcrowded shelters.
Shelters benefit from field trips too. Those who take the dogs out can report how the dog acted in a more natural environment or reacted to other pets and children. Plus, volunteers can get better pictures to showcase these animals. BeChewy reported that field trips can also lead to shorter shelter stays.
Each year, 6.3 million pets enter U.S. shelters, which is an average of 17,260 a day, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The number of dogs and cats taken in by pet shelters hit 46,807 during January 2023, an increase of 1,744 compared with January 2022, the 24Pet “Shelter Watch Report” found.
Around 920,000 surrendered animals are euthanized every year. Shelters are striving to minimize euthanasia rates by promoting adoption campaigns, spaying and neutering programs, and behavior rehabilitation.
Facebook Users React
Monday’s Facebook post so far has had over 11,000 views and 855 likes.
“He just wants you to know how good he is out & wanting a forever home to give his love & receive his affection for you!” wrote one Facebook user.
Another commented: “I pray he gets a home soon!! Every animal deserves that.”
A third Facebook user posted: “He’s been in the shelter long enough and deserves a home!”
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
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.