An adorable video of a sad rescue dog finding his forever home has melted hearts online.
In the video, shared on TikTok by Katie Kramer under the username @therealslimkatieeeee, the American pit bull terrier’s demeanor changes as soon as he realizes he is going to a permanent home. At the start of the clip, the sweet dog looks dejected as he sits in his cage in the animal shelter.
As soon as he’s in the car on the way home, the dog perks up and looks excited as he realizes he is leaving the rescue center. The heartwarming video ends with the dog playing with a soft toy in his home–and he looks completely different to when he was in the shelter.
The caption in the video reads: “POV you go find the saddest dog at the shelter and take him home to the life he deserves.”
Underneath the clip, Kramer added: “He did indeed get a freedom cheeseburger on the way home.”
The video has attracted more than 200,000 likes on TikTok. Commenters have praised Kramer for choosing to adopt the rescue and give him a loving home.
One wrote: “I literally cannot convey to people that people like you are the best type of human. Animal rescuers have a huge spot in my heart, I can’t wait until I’m able to soon.”
Another user called Sara Ross added: “Thank you so much for saving his life. Rescue is the absolute best. The love you give them is returned back tenfold.”
Dogs that are labeled as pit bulls in shelters wait three times as long to be adopted than dogs that look like the breed but are classified differently, according to a study published in PLOS ONE.
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Researchers found that potential pet owners were less likely to take home a dog if shelters called it a pit bull because the breed is negatively perceived and believed to be more aggressive than other breeds.
This is likely because pit bulls are descended from bull-baiting dogs, bred to bite and hold large animals, according to the ASPCA. When the practice of baiting was outlawed in the 1800s, the dogs were bred and trained to fight each other.
However, the charity highlights that this does not mean modern pit bulls are aggressive and many are loving family pets. Rather, behavior develops through a complex interaction between environment and genetics, and socializing a dog is one of the most important factors.
Newsweek has reached out to Kramer for comment.
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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.