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An elderly dog who spent 14 years at a shelter has touched millions online after finally being adopted at 19 years old.
Stuart has finally found his forever home after spending 14 years in an Illinois animal shelter. Now, Stuart spends his days sleeping at home surrounded by a family and lots of love.
The family has vowed to love Stuart for as long as he will have them, promising him a life free from "concrete kennels or loud noise."
Natalie Snyder rescued Stuart from a shelter at the start of September after seeing a TikTok video posted of him by an employee. The video showed Stuart inside the kennel, where he's been living since 2008.
"I can't help but grieve the last 19 years for him. The peace he could have felt. His life was taken from him. All I can do is love him for the rest of it," Snyder wrote in her now-viral TikTok video of the adoption story. After sharing the video on September 18, it received over 3 million views.
"He loves to sleep everywhere, so I just let him," she added. "We love him."
Now, Stuart's life is filled with "a lot of love" and "a lot of 'good boy Stuart.'" As described by Snyder, "This is Stuart's home, for as long as he will have us."
Clips showed Stuart comfortably settling in, slumbering inside at home, safe and sound.
Stuart's story of years inside a shelter without a family to call his own is sad but not rare. According to statistics from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), senior dogs have a 25 percent adoption rate, compared to a 60 percent rate for young dogs.
November is Adopt a Senior Pet month with increased efforts to find loving homes for those four-legged friends who have lived a little longer. The ASPCA reassures that adopting older dogs can have great benefits, including having grown out of habits such as teething and destructive behavior.
Snyder's journey to adopting Stuart wasn't straightforward. After seeing the video posted by the former employee, she contacted the shelter and managed to set up an opportunity to drive five hours to visit Stuart.
Despite falling in love with Stuart during the visit, Snyder said she was soon told by the shelter that he was no longer up for adoption and that the shelter was his home. Snyder however wasn't willing to go down without a fight and took to Facebook where she shared her experience. The post blew up.
It wasn't long before the shelter had a change of heart and contacted Snyder again. "They knew he deserved a home of his own. The rescue finally called me and told me to come get him," she wrote.
Stuart has not only finally got his own family and home, but he's also gained heaps of fans who watched his journey online.
"Best thing on the internet today. Good boy Stuart," commented one user.
"I immediately started crying. Thank you for giving him love," added another.
In an update video, Snyder shared that Stuart has been loving having treats and bath times and is now on treatment food for his kidneys after a vet visit.
Newsweek has contacted Natalie Snyder for comment.
