Dog breaks hearts while patiently waiting for return of owner who died in New Jersey
A 14-year-old dachshund named Sammy broke hearts on social media after a shelter revealed he was stubbornly waiting for the return of his owner who had died.
Sammy was homeless and without prospects when someone dropped him off at the Monmouth County SPCA shelter in New Jersey.
“All day he sits and stares out the glass waiting for his person to come,” the shelter wrote Jan. 21 on Facebook.
“Every time someone passes by, his little head perks up but then lowers back down when he realizes it’s just a stranger.”
The identity of his owner was not revealed, but shelter staff said it was an “elderly” person who recently died. Sammy’s best friend, a littermate, also died not long ago, adding to his sense of loss, the shelter said.
A photo of Sammy staring out the window of the shelter was included with the Facebook post, which had 4,800 reactions and 1,500 comments as of Jan. 24.
“This is gut wrenching,” Marci Wagner wrote on Facebook.
“I couldn’t see thru my nonstop tears,” Tracy Valliant wrote.
“My heart broke into pieces. I can’t imagine how broken his little heart & soul is,” Kerre Cloyes posted.
The post was shared more than 3,000 times, mostly by people hoping to convince someone to adopt Sammy.
It worked. The post went up around 11:30 a.m. Jan. 21 — and Sammy was adopted within about seven hours, the shelter said.
The identity of Sammy’s new owner was not revealed, but photos of their meeting were posted online.
“Thousands of comments and shares, hundreds of emails and messages — all for one special boy,” the shelter wrote.
“We’re so glad that Sammy found his home, and all from your networking! Sweet Sammy is sleeping comfortably tonight with his new forever family, one that will help him remember what it’s like to be loved.”
However, the shelter had a message for its thousands of followers.
“We want to remind everyone about the animals whose posts don’t go viral in a few hours - they also need the same kind of rally we saw for Sammy,” the shelter wrote. “We encourage everyone to visit their local shelters and see which adoptable pets are waiting for homes — your perfect match could be waiting for you right this moment, and you’d never know!”
This story was originally published January 24, 2022 at 6:50 AM with the headline "Dog breaks hearts while patiently waiting for return of owner who died in New Jersey."