Surrendered Shelter Dog Briefly Finds Happiness, Unaware That His Clock Is Ticking

Rambo finally has someone to himself for a little while, and he makes the most of every second. The 90-pound, 4-year-old dog spends time in the shelter yard with a volunteer, leaning into her and climbing into her lap. He even hands out kisses as if this is simply what every afternoon should look like. But there is something she knows that Rambo does not. The shelter dog has less than 72 hours before his euthanasia deadline at Carson Animal Shelter. However, in the video shared by @hicarsondogs, the shelter dog is still smiling, playing, and soaking up all the attention.

Surrendered shelter dog plays with human, unaware he’s on the euthanasia list

Rambo starts by playing with the volunteer in the shelter yard. He is so happy to have someone focused on him that he bumps into her legs and keeps coming back for more attention. Then he sits beside her and looks up into her face lovingly before giving her a kiss on the chin.

Next, he climbs into her lap, this time wearing a little sun hat while she scratches his neck. The text reveals what makes the scene so difficult to watch: in less than 72 hours, Rambo is scheduled to be euthanized for space. He seems completely unaware, though.

Rambo puts his head in the volunteer’s lap, leans into her scratches, and even gets goofy enough to lie underneath one of her legs. Outside the kennel, he runs toward the camera with the same big happy expression one other volunteer described in the comments.

She says Rambo is often one of the last dogs to be taken out, even though he walks surprisingly well on a leash for a dog his size. He is also described as social, people-friendly, affectionate, and very fond of slobbery kisses. Rambo came to the shelter with his siblings Pantera and Canela in July. Pantera has since been euthanized, leaving Rambo and Canela still waiting for a way out.

The hardest part of the shelter dog’s video comes near the end. After their time outside, Rambo stops at the entrance to his kennel and has to be gently guided back inside. Once behind the mesh door, he paws at it, seemingly asking to come back out. The video has received more than 1,800 likes in less than 10 hours of being online. Viewers took to the comments, urging someone to foster or adopt him and his sister.