Dog Who Only Knew ‘Loving Home’ Ends Up in Shelter Aged 12, Heartbroken

Animal lovers responded in a massive way to a senior dog who had entered a rescue shelter through no fault of his own—and thanks to this enormous reaction, he has now found a loving new family.

Rescue organization Many Tears Rescue shared a heartbreaking post to their Instagram account @manytearsrescue in May, showing photographs of an older dog who they said was 12 years old, had lost most of his sight and hearing, and had just come into their care.

They asked followers to imagine “spending your whole life in a warm and loving home, only to find yourself getting surrendered” in your old age—and a staff member told Newsweek that their appeal for Zebadee led to him dozens of adoption applications.

“This is the reality for our poor boy Zebadee,” they wrote in the post. “He did nothing wrong and neither did his beloved owner—she was just 92 years old and could no longer give him the care he needed.”

They shared their plea to find Zebadee “the most perfect retirement home, where he can go back to being absolutely cherished and doted on.”

Admitting the old dog is “breaking all of our hearts,” they described walking past his kennel as “truly soul destroying.”

“No dog deserves to live at a rescue, but for one that is 12 years old and has only ever known a home and love, it really is the worst possible place.”

Instagram users flooded the post with love, awarding it more than 12,500 likes, as one commenter called him a “beautiful boy”, and another despaired: “Poor confused boy and heartbreaking for his owner who couldn’t manage caring for her companion.”

“He deserves the best. What a sweetie pie, very heartbreaking to give up your fur baby,” another wrote, as another agreed: “Gorgeous boy. His owner must have been absolutely devastated to let him go.”

And as another put it: “How desperately sad for both of them. Very courageous of his elderly owner to part with him to ensure he was delivered into caring and loving hands.”

Alongside photos of Zebadee receiving cuddles, curled up for a nap, and smiling at the camera, Many Tears Rescue said the old dog “doesn’t ask for a lot, so please don’t keep him waiting here for long.”

And the shelter—and Zebadee—got their wish, as just days later, the senior dog was adopted.

A Many Tears spokesperson told Newsweek: “He got reserved the very next day after the post, so yes, it worked instantly!

“He received over 30 applications from the post alone.”

And while they haven’t heard from his new owners about how Zebadee is settling in, as they described it, “no news is good news.

“We can always assume they’re doing very well unless we hear otherwise—we tend not to contact owners unless necessary after they adopt.”

While it was a happy ending for Zebadee, many dogs closer to home aren’t so lucky. In the US, millions of dogs enter shelters each year. In 2024, 5.8 million dogs and cats were admitted to shelters and rescues, while 4.2 million animals were adopted, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA).

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