Dog says goodbye to all who took care of him (Video)

There’s no better example of someone getting what they’ve long deserved than this sweet shelter dog named Stevie. This adorable pup—with a shiny black coat and white markings on his chest—spent almost six years at Dogtown South Africa before finally meeting his forever family. If that’s not enough to make your heart melt, watching his sweetest sendoff certainly will. Stevie arrived at Dogtown SA as a stray when he was around a year old. From the very beginning, he was outgoing and sweet with both people and other dogs. His new friends at the shelter figured it wouldn’t be long before he found his forever home — but unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

For six years, Stevie was passed over again and again, and no one was ever really sure why. “[It] was always a mystery to us,” said Elanza Kloppers, the adoptions manager at Dogtown SA. “Stevie met lots of potential families, but for some reason, another dog was always chosen. Many of his roommates got adopted through the years and we were always hoping that something would come along for Stevie. Being a black dog also didn’t help, as it’s quite common for black dogs to be overlooked in shelters.” Despite the long wait, Stevie and his rescuers never gave up hope that his perfect family was out there somewhere — and they were right. “When I finally got the news from the adopter that Stevie was the one, I could not wait to give the team the news,” Kloppers said. “They were overjoyed!” 

This shelter dog’s happy ending is a long time coming!

Since he’d been at the shelter for such a long time, everyone who works there had come to love Stevie like their own dog. They really wanted to do something special to honor his time there and celebrate his next chapter, so on his last day, as he headed out to the car, everyone at the shelter lined up to say one last hello and goodbye to their beloved Stevie. The team all wanted to say goodbye to him and wish him well. As Stevie made his way down the line of his cheering friends, he was so excited. He seemed to know that it was a special day, and was so happy that all of his friends had come out to see him off. For Stevie, it really was the best day ever. Watch the video, it shows Stevie being led through a lineup of Dogtown team members who one-by-one shower him with goodbye pats and cuddles before he jumps onto the tailgate of the truck.