When a man received a call from a local shelter asking if he could take in a dog to foster, he promised himself that he would not be keeping the animal.
The dog was described as “aggressive.” However, when the man arrived at the shelter to meet him, he encountered a dog with an entirely different demeanor than what he expected.
He agreed to foster Brutus, who was surrendered by his original family due to his ‘aggressive’ behavior.
Lee Asher is an animal advocate who promotes animal welfare and rescue on his social media platforms. After traveling across the country visiting different animal shelters and documenting his experiences, he founded “The Asher House,” a sanctuary that is dedicated to advocating for shelter animals.
One day, Asher received a call from a local animal shelter that dog named Brutus was surrendered by his family, who claimed that the he was “aggressive” and “didn’t like men.” However, when Asher recorded his first time meeting Brutus, the camera captured a much different dog than the one that was described.
Upon seeing Asher, Brutus wagged his tail and ran straight toward him. Within seconds, he allowed Asher to pet him and gave him kisses on the face.
When Brutus’ previous owners surrendered him, they left the following note: “We’ve decided to surrender Brutus. His behavior is uncontrollable, and we do not feel safe in the house with him. We don’t take this decision lightly, but last night was awful, and we cannot do this any longer.”
They also claimed that Brutus did not like men, and preferred to have female caregivers.
Photo: pixelshot / Canva Pro
Brutus proved both of his previous owner’s claims about him wrong in just a minute of meeting Asher.
In order to determine Brutus’ behavior around other dogs, Asher had some of his own dogs come down and meet him. To everyone’s surprise, Brutus calmly nuzzled up against each of the dogs and lightly sniffed them out to get to know them better. Not once did he demonstrate aggression, and his tail remained wagging the entire time.
Asher did not hesitate to fill out the paperwork to bring Brutus home with him and the rest of his pack.
As Brutus attempted to leap up into the front seat of the car to kiss his rescuer, Asher had to repeatedly remind himself that he was only fostering, and not keeping him. “I can’t wait to show you your new home!” he told the dog, before correcting himself to say “temporary home.”
Once at The Asher House, Brutus fit right in with the rest of the dogs as if he had been there the entire time!
Asher documented much of Brutus’ journey, including taking him for walks, playing with his foster brothers and sisters, and snuggling up with him on the couch.
It didn't take Asher long to fall in love and go back on his initial decision.
As he sat among a pile of happy dogs, with Brutus right up against his cheek giving him kisses, Asher happily informed his followers that Brutus, renamed “Hooch,” found his forever home. “And it’s right here! He’s gonna stay with us at The Asher House,” Asher said. “He’s my baby now! And he’s gonna be an Asher House baby forever!”
Asher’s other dogs clearly were in favor of his decision, as they all surrounded Hooch with their tails wagging.
Others praised Asher for taking in the dog as his own and were in awe of Hooch’s sweet demeanor.
“Lee Asher, you amaze me every day. God bless you and those dogs!” one TikTok user commented. “Brutus is a sweetheart!” another user wrote.
“I truly hope that the people who decided to trash Brutus are watching this and see how simple it really is … LOVE. He just needed some love,” another user noted.
Photo: Hitdelight / Shutterstock
Despite coming from a family who viewed him as a nuisance, Hooch’s unconditional love towards other humans was unwavering. His story proves that as long as you give a dog your entire heart, they’ll give you theirs right back.
All they need is patience, compassion, and a whole lot of love.
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.
