The issue of overcrowded shelters grows more serious each day. Employees, volunteers, and dog advocates constantly warn about the overwhelming number of dogs left behind.
For many, those warnings feel like nothing more than numbers. What they don’t see are the countless heartbreaking stories behind every single dog waiting inside those kennels.
That is why sharing these stories matters, and today’s is about a shelter dog named Carlo, who spends every day peeking through a crack in his kennel, holding onto the hope that someone will finally choose him.
Longing For A Forever Home
Carlo, a six-year-old dog and long-term resident of Longmont Humane Society in Longmont, Colorado, spends his days dreaming of a forever home.
Staff and volunteers who adore him have noticed his longing in a special way. It is captured in a TikTok video posted by @3coloradodogs.
“When you stare out the crack of your kennel every single day patiently waiting for someone to finally pick you,” it is written in the video. “And all you can do is hope someone will finally notice you.”
The footage shows Carlo’s daily routine, his sorrowful eyes searching through the tiny opening, silently yearning for love and a new life.
His painful reality inspired staff to share the video on TikTok, hoping it might bring him closer to a happy ending.
“Whenever he looks through the crack, it makes me feel a bit sad because I know he wants to get adopted so badly and he’s just looking for his forever person,” Shellby Hall, a shelter volunteer, told Newsweek.
Still, Hall added that there is joy in those moments too, because Carlo always brightens when he spots her through the crack, knowing it means it is time for a walk.
Because of his resilience and hope, Hall said she wants him to find someone who will bring that same joy into his life every single day.
The Internet Reacts
Since the TikTok was shared, Carlo’s haunting gaze has spread beyond the walls of Longmont Humane Society and touched people everywhere.
There were a lot of reactions and we have singled out a few of them.
“Someone please help this beautiful soul,” one user wrote.
“What a beautiful boy 🥺♥️♥️♥️♥️your person is coming Carlo hang in there 🥺,” another added.
And the third quipped: “I pray this beautiful good boy finds the love patience&kindness he so deserves🙏🏿🙏🏻🙏🏽♥️♥️♥️”
Hall said she is confident Carlo would be “the best addition” to any family, thanks to his affectionate and gentle personality.
“He’s such a good dog. He truly just wants a family that will love him as much as he would love them,” she said.
Here’s hoping Carlo finally finds his forever home.