The ʀᴇsᴄᴜᴇʀs who were working to find him a home after he had been ɴᴇɢʟᴇᴄᴛᴇᴅ for far too long were moved by the smile of an adopted dog. Petey, a dog who was passed over by potential adopters and transferred from a high intake shelter in Nᴏʀᴛʜ Cᴀʀᴏʟɪɴᴀ to SPCA Wake in early October, received an update on his adoption from the SPCA of Wake County.

The small shelter was over capacity and had already extended Petey’s stay longer than usual. With no potential adopters in sight, the shelter reached out to SPCA of Wake County to see if they could help give Petey more time to find his people. The SPCA instantly agreed to take Petey in. While the situation was ᴅᴇᴠᴀsᴛᴀᴛɪɴɢ, Petey didn’t seem sad at all. Instead, he was thrilled to meet his new friends. Samantha Ranlet, spokesperson for the SPCA of Wake County said: “As soon as he got here, he was yanking on the ʟᴇᴀsʜ trying to get through the door. He bounded into the building.”

The pup’s vibrant personality sᴛᴜɴɴᴇᴅ SPCA staff at first, especially when they considered just how many times he’d been ᴏᴠᴇʀʟᴏᴏᴋᴇᴅ at his previous shelter. Ranlet said: “He was super friendly from day one and very playful. We couldn’t believe that nobody wanted him.” They brought him home and shared some adorable photos of him snuggling with his new family and hanging out with his new furry sibling. They also shared one photo of Petey curled up on a blanket with a big, content smile on his face. Ranlet said: “We, unfortunately, expected that he might be ᴏᴠᴇʀʟᴏᴏᴋᴇᴅ for smaller dogs, like before. But it only took about a few weeks for someone to fall in love with him.”

According to Ranlet, Petey’s forever family saw the picture of the sweet pup and instantly knew that he belonged with them. A month into his stay at the SPCA, Petey’s new family picked him up, officially ending his lengthy shelter stay for good. It didn’t take long for Petey to settle into his new home, as he soaked up his new life with his puppy brother and loving human siblings. He loves playing fetch in his backyard already and giving endless hugs and kisses to his people.

And at the end of each day, Petey, the ᴏɴᴄᴇ-ᴏᴠᴇʀʟᴏᴏᴋᴇᴅ shelter dog, curls up on his warm bed and falls asleep with a huge smile on his face. Petey is just one of many shelter dogs who are ᴏᴠᴇʀʟᴏᴏᴋᴇᴅ for long periods of time. At SCPA of Wake County alone, there are between 8 and 10 pups who’ve been waiting to find their forever homes for almost a year. But just like Petey’s story ends with a happy ending, Ranlet and SPCA staff are hopeful that their other long-term residents will soon get their happily-ever-after. He said: “We’re rooting for them to find their people. That’s what they deserve.”