In an online world full of celebrity dogs, be a… talking dog!
I know what you’re gonna think: A talking dog? Big deal…
Well, it really is a big deal because you don’t get the chance to meet a dog like Tatum every day. He’s not just the online sensation everyone’s raving about. He’s a spokesperson… a spokesdog for the underdog. And, he knows that situation very well.
He used to be the underdog himself.
Not only did Tatum and his owners jump on the bandwagon and create a virtual spot where a man’s best friend could vent… they did even more.
They spread hope that even the most lost doggy souls could experience a major plot twist and have a pawtastic life.
Rescue Dog Rising Up
His location? Maine, just two hours down south from where his future pawrents lived.
His breed? Something between rescue and brown.
His personality? Absolutely, pawsitively fabulous.
And, Nicole saw it all just from a photo online. It was all it took for this Maine girl to fall for a sweet, broken-hearted pooch.
It was crystal clear: Nicole Lever knew she’d found her dog. She had to bring him home. That mysterious pup whose eyes haunted her day and night had to become her lazy Sunday morning cuddle.
The only thing was… How on Earth to get her husband, Charles, to agree to the adoption?
They both wanted a dog eventually. But, the condo they were living in at the time was too small and not a place to raise a dog. Circumstances weren’t going in their favor.
Still, Nicole couldn’t resist the urge to daydream about having a pup in her life. A pup like Tatum.
“Nicole fell quickly in love with Tatum’s photo on their website. It was instant. And when she sent it to me, she said, ‘This is my dog,’” Charles says. “For two months, I insisted I didn’t feel the same until Tatum’s foster got on the phone with Nicole, explained his personality, and sent more photos than the one on the website,” said Charles for The Spruce Pets.
That spring was the spring of changes for the Levers, and the biggest one was the most important one, too.
Enter their lives: Tatum, the rescue with a hidden talent!
A Natural Comedian Now Laughs At The Face Of His Old Life
When Tatum’s previous foster decided she would lend Tatum to Nicole just to see if he was a good fit for a service dog and a part of their family, she knew she was saying one last goodbye.
Everyone who ever met Tatum instantly fell for his charm and his awkwardly broken tail that never wags to the left.
Thus, a new Lever family member was born. Tatum finally got his furever home in Bangor, Maine, with Nicole and Charles. Thank God for The Pixel Fund; otherwise, Nicole would’ve never found a dog like Tatum and rescued him from an extremely high-euthanasia shelter.
There you have it: the picture-perfect couple with a loving dog next to them.
Life couldn’t be sweeter.
Or… could it?
Fast forward three years into the future, and an idea came to life: create a social handle for Tatum because he’s just too pawfect to keep his dogginess hidden from the rest of the world.
However, the Internet gods had other plans. Tatum’s story blew up after a certain someone made a little mistake and shared his walkie video with the wrong caption: This is Tatum. This is him on his first walk after being rescued.
Of course, it wasn’t Tatum’s first walkie. It was just the way he showed his excitement.
Nothing was the same after that video, and Nicole and Charles knew they had to do something about Tatum’s online status. Luckily for them, everyone wanted a piece of Tatum.
Soon enough, Tatum’s pawlebrity career took off, and the TikTok account @hi.this.is.tatum was created.
Tatum’s undeniable charm, his obsession with chicken nuggets, and the voice of a comedian who laughs at the face of his old life scored him a humongous fan base in just a little while.
With a huge fanbase on Instagram and an even bigger one on TikTok, you’re looking at one of the biggest petfluencers.
But, Tatum wouldn’t be Tatum if he didn’t put a little bit of spice into his videos. What makes this dog so special (besides the talking part, obvs) is his sweet lips.
F, fank you very much!
Tatum’s conversations with his hooman mom and dad are the highlight of every day. He’s a fun-loving mutt who acts exactly like a curious little boy. He’s a puppy that will always stay a puppy in his heart.
After a while, you kinda start to believe Tatum actually talks. And, no one can prove us differently!
Who would’ve thought that this Pittie with a sas was once a broken underdog with ear chunks missing, a tail being crooked, and a heart being shattered by bad people? Nicole and Charles help put Tatum back together. And, he paid them back by filling up a hole in their lives they didn’t know they had.
“Rescue animals deserve a good life because of what they had to go through, and what an opportunity we have to give that to them. Tatum is healthy. He is fed. He is still learning he doesn’t need to fear certain things. And he sleeps in a warm bed every night,” says his dad Charles.
What The Future Brings For Tatum
The future seems even brighter for Tatum and his pawrents. The talkative pooch is on the right track and still has a lot to say to us.
What’s new in Tatum’s world is that he’s become a bookworm, with his own book released, called, Tatum Comes Home, a fun canine diary that will make you laugh out loud and feel warm and fuzzy around the heart.
What’s for sure is that there will be more fun videos coming from the Lever kitchen. There will be more hilarious Tatum talks.
Everyone needs a bit of Tatum in their lives, no matter if it’s a book, a rib-tickling video, or an animated movie we all pray for.
Come on, Disney, Pixar, Illumination, and all the others!
We need a Tatum-animated movie narrated by Tatum, ASAP!