Dog Gets First Toy After Being Chained Up for 8 Years: 'Crying'

Apr 12, 2023

A rescue dog called Yuki has melted hearts all over the internet after a video of her reaction to getting her first toy after eight years of captivity went viral on social media.

In the video shared on TikTok earlier in April by the pup's owner, under the username Svperdone, Yuki can be seen struggling to understand the concept of playing with a toy as her owner tries to entertain her with a parrot plush toy.

The post comes with a caption that explains: "Yuki's 1st toy being a chained guard dog most of her life." Followed by: "She doesn't know what playing is yet but we are trying."

Yuki's owner Anni told Newsweek that she is a rescue dog from Romania and was abused by humans then abandoned and had to live on the street until she got picked up into a shelter.

"She was pregnant there and all her kids got taken away & when nobody wanted to adopt her we took her as she would have been euthanized," Anni said.

"Yuki has been with us since February/March 2023 and went from being a very anxious dog to a curious happy soul which makes us very happy. After touch-therapy and a much needed haircut she now has two sisters, also rescue dogs and we still try to teach her new things every day.

"After being abused by mostly men and thus being especially scared of them, she even trusts my dad now who is one of her favorite cuddle partners."

Approximately 3.1 million companion dogs enter U.S. animal shelters nationwide every year and of those, about 710,000 dogs who enter shelters as strays are returned to their owners, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Each year, approximately 2 million shelter dogs are adopted, and about 390,000 shelter dogs are euthanized.

The video quickly gained popularity on social media, attracting animal lovers from across the platform. It has so far received over 1.5 million views and 231,800 likes.

One user, george, commented: "She was trying to pet it." And Kriss.spams said: "Dogs look like their owners.. yuki looks like your dad." Erin added: "She's a purebred good girl."

Zoe wrote: "Mine didn't know what playing was at first too, but if you try every day they'll love it!!" And snusmumriken said: "My mill breeder rescue did the same thing. it took him months to learn from our other dog how to use toys and play." Eva? Added: "You are the sweetest and kindest person ever."

Another user, Josi_ commented: "This is so cute! My boy rips up plushies like a mass murderer." And Zohraachour332 said: "My god I'm crying." Sandra added: "Thank you for giving her new life."

LuochaStrawberry wrote: "She's sitting like a baby omg." And Manne added: "Odd tip but I rehab dogs all the time, if you play fetch with yourself and make it look really fun, your dog may start to chase the toy as well."

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.