ViralHogIt’s always great when two internet trends come together for a wholesome and heartwarming crossover.
As I’m sure you’re aware, the ‘What The Fluff’ challenge has been doing the rounds lately, and frankly, has been done to death.
However, when it’s incorporated with a video of a soldier returning home, you just know it’s going to hit you right in the feels.
I don’t know why, but when an animal is involved like this, it always seems to be more emotional. Like when animals die in films, it’s almost always sadder than when a person does. Who knows, maybe I’ve become desensitised?
Anyway, check out this dog’s reaction when he sees his soldier owner, Kevin, return home after nine months away:
Did you see the little side-eye the dog gives the camera? It’s like he’s saying ‘Come on guys, wtf is this? I’m not falling for it whatever it is’.
But then the big reveal happens and the dog loses his cool completely. Again, it’s heartwarming stuff.
The reunion was filmed in Livermore, California, by Lisa Lord, who said:
My son, Private 1st Class Kevin arrived home after nine months in Fort Bragg where he had been training for the Special Forces Qualification course.
His leave was granted to come home to see family and friends before he would return back to his base to continue the 18-month long intense training hoping to become a Green Beret serving our country.
His younger brother Jacob and I thought it would be fun to do the #WhatTheFluffChallenge. While we were all very excited and emotional to have him at home, no one was happier than our 4-year-old Golden Retriever, Zephyr, and none of us anticipated Z’s reaction. [sic]
In other ‘dogs reacting to things’ news, check out this Golden Retriever’s response after being told she was cancer free.
The dog, who’s named Lily, defied the odds and found out she was cancer free after her owner was told a tumour like hers hadn’t been benign in 25 years.
Lily’s owner, who lives with the joyful looking pup, in Hawaii, relayed the good news to her, and you can see Lily’s excited reaction.
Check it out:
The video was shared on social media, where Lily’s owner explained:
Overnight Lily got sick. She could hardly stand.
The vets identified a tumour common in Golden Retrievers, which comes on quickly and is rarely treatable. Though surgery was an option, it probably wouldn’t cure her completely.
The post continued:
The bad news was that even if we did do the surgery she’d only have months.
There was a small chance, only 10 per cent chance that it was the benign kind. The vet said that in her 20 years of emergency medicine, she never had a case where that happened.
Lily’s loving owners couldn’t bare the thought of losing their pet, so despite knowing the odds weren’t in her favour, they went ahead with the surgery.
Amazingly, the tumour turned out to be benign – apparently the first dog in 25 years to have a benign tumour of that kind.
It may be cold and wet outside, but at least my heart’s warm now.
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Charlie Cocksedge is a journalist and sub-editor at UNILAD. He graduated from the University of Manchester with an MA in Creative Writing, where he learnt how to write in the third person, before getting his NCTJ. His work has also appeared in such places as The Guardian, PN Review and the bin.