Golden Retriever Refusing to Give Back Treat He Stole From Shop Goes Viral

A dog called Oakley has left the internet in stitches after stealing a treat from a shop in a clip that has quickly gone viral on social media.

In the viral video, shared on TikTok in November, under the username The3retrievers_, the golden retriever can be seen chewing a treat that he just stole, which he is hiding in his mouth, refusing to give it back to his mom, who is trying to explain to him stealing is wrong.

The hilarious clip comes with a caption that says: "My dog stole a treat right off the shelf... I tried to explain to him that stealing is illegal." Followed by: "I got framed!"

The poster, Melanie, told Newsweek: "I took Oakley to Petco to buy more dog food and stock up on some more training treats. While I was walking through the treat aisle, I looked down and saw Oakley had helped himself to a yummy-smelling bone that was conveniently placed on the bottom shelf. What dog wouldn't think it was for them if it's right under their nose?

"Even though he was innocent, I asked him to drop the bone since we had not paid for it. But, of course, he was not interested in doing that and kept turning his head slightly away from me. After several verbal requests were not successful, I gently pried the bone out of his mouth and he just looked at me with very sad puppy eyes.

"I took the treat to the counter to pay for it and once we got in the car to head home, I gave the bone back to him and he was a very happy boy!"

It's not uncommon for dogs to steal items, especially if it's food, but do they actually know they are stealing, or do they just think everything is for them?

While there is still no proof that dogs understand stealing as a concept, a study featured in Science Daily found that dogs are more likely to steal something when they know that humans are not watching, which suggests that they take into account what the human can or cannot see.

The video quickly went viral on social media, getting viewers from across TikTok. It has so far received over 628,300 views and 31,700 likes on the platform.

One user, Mister Person, commented: "That's hooman rules. Floof rules are, finders keepers!!" And hunterrautumn said: "I think it's their fault for putting treats on the bottom shelf."

Lisajelikovsky wrote: "He thought they were free samples... Just like at Costco.." And Silas-Vinny&Sully added: "Why they keep them where they are so easy to get. Mine is also a shoplifter."

Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to life@newsweek.com with some details about your best friend and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.