News

Aug 08, 2023

Tears As Lonely Dog Needs Sweater Tied on Cage at Vet To Keep Him Company

Heartwarming footage has emerged of the efforts one veterinary clinic went to to ensure a lonely dog had some company at their premises. Dr. Meghan Denney started her own practice the Four Paws at

Heartwarming footage has emerged of the efforts one veterinary clinic went to to ensure a lonely dog had some company at their premises.

Dr. Meghan Denney started her own practice the Four Paws at Fulshear Veterinary Clinic in Fulshear, Texas, back in 2019.

"My mother is a veterinarian, so I have been in this field my whole life," she told Newsweek. "Four Paws is a practice where I place high priority on doctor/client transparency and education, as well as a fun work environment."

That's why she and her colleagues began posting clips on TikTok, with Dr. Denney seeing it as an opportunity for pet owners to look "behind the scenes in treatment areas and appreciate that we are humans who care deeply about our patients."

That's how the story of Baxter, the 13-year-old Shi Tzu. Baxter was proof that dogs miss their owners when they are not there.

In a study published in the scientific journal Applied Animal Behavior Science, researchers took 12 privately owned dogs, with no history of separation-related behavior problems, and filmed them and their reactions on three separate occasions when left alone at home.

In the first instance, the owner returned after 30 minutes, then two hours later the second time and four hours later the third. Researchers filmed the canines from 10 minutes before their owner left until 10 minus after their return.

It was found that the dogs reacted more animatedly the longer they were separated from their owners.

Baxter's story is a little more complicated than that though. He's just very sociable and wants someone—anyone—to keep him company. This can pose something of a problem in a very busy veterinary clinic.

"He is attention-driven and loves to be the center of all things all the time," Dr. Denney explained. "Baxter was here for a few hours to get some lab testing done. He was happy and relaxed if someone was actively sitting with him and interacting with him, but if we had to step away, he would start singing us the song of his people—barking and crying."

Dr. Denney credits her veterinary technician, Lyndee for coming up with the idea of combining sweaters and a surgical scrub cap stuffed with towels on a chair to create a "person."

It allowed staff to get on with looking after all of the animals on their books, all while keeping the veteran Shi Tzu happy. "We could continue doing other things and talk to Baxter from across treatment and he was fine," Dr. Denney said.

A video of the faux human was posted to TikTok, where it's already been watched over 200,000 times. One viewer has already branded their fake "person" a "care crow," while another shared a hilarious story of a similar experiences involving their pet pooch.

"When my dog had surgery he was crying so bad in his kennel they had to put a life size cutout of Edward Cullen in his room," they wrote. In fact, plenty of fellow TikTokers appear to have done similar. "We have used a cardboard cutout of William Shatner before," another user commented.

Others, meanwhile, were full of praise for the efforts of Dr. Denney and her staff. "This is genius," one viewer said while another called it "sweet and thoughtful."

Dr. Denny has been blown away by the reaction to the clip. "Our goal is always patient care so this reduced his stress and was also funny, so I caught a video of it and made a TikTok," she said. "People like to see novel ideas on patient care and they love to see things they have never encountered before."

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