A dog’s life changed dramatically when the family who adopted him eight years ago returned him to the shelter. The dog, Max, ended up at the shelter again “due to unforeseen circumstances,” according to the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and the sudden change was scary for him.
Employees at the shelter could see that he was “terrified” and “heartbroken,” the Pennsylvania SPCA said in a Facebook post. “He wouldn’t even eat,” the organization said. But then a video shared on TikTok went viral, and it helped connect Max with his new family.
The video was shared on TikTok by Sarah Brown, an employee at the shelter. “This job breaks my heart daily,” Sarah captioned her video of Max.
Text on the video said, “POV: the only family you’ve ever known returns you to the shelter after adopting you as a puppy 8 years ago.” In the video, Max looked sad and confused at the shelter, clearly “heartbroken” after “the only family [he’s] ever known” left him there.
In a follow-up video, Sarah told Max’s story and shared some positive news — Max had been adopted by his “old friends.” In the video, Sarah explained that Max was taken to the Pennsylvania SPCA shelter when he was just a puppy, but he was adopted “quickly.”
When his family took him back to the shelter after he lived with them for eight years, “Kennel life [was] very scary for him,” Sarah noted on TikTok.
But after Sarah’s initial video went viral, “someone Max knew from his old life recognized him,” according to Pennsylvania SPCA’s Facebook post.
The video showed Max happily leaving the shelter to go to his new home with his old friend. “They say everyone comes into your life for a reason. I think its the same for dogs,” Sarah captioned the video. “Thank you to Max’s old friends who have turned into his new family.”
His “old friend” and new parent responded to the video, writing, “i love our new boy so much, he’s such a sweetheart.”
The shelter shared some photos comparing Max’s life at the shelter and his life at his new home, and he’s clearly so much happier after being adopted by his new family.
“Thank you to everyone who rallied for Max and to his old friends who have turned into his new family,” the Pennsylvania SPCA wrote on Facebook.