While visiting a local animal control facility, Courtney Wingate, director of the Humane Society of Northwest Louisiana, spotted three Labrador puppies in a kennel. As she passed by, one little pup flashed a grin so sweet it stopped her in her tracks.
Wingate couldn’t walk away — especially not from the smiling pup — so she quickly called volunteer Sarrah Walton for help. Walton rushed over to pick up the 8-week-old puppies and, being a devoted LSU fan, named them Joe, Burreaux, and O after the university’s quarterback and coach.
All three pups tested negative for parvo at the vet, but once they arrived at the rescue, Burreaux — the smiley one — suddenly got sick. He was rushed back to the vet and, thankfully, made a full and speedy recovery.
Back at the shelter, Burreaux’s charming habit began to shine again. Walton noticed that any time someone used a sweet, high-pitched voice to talk to him, the little pup would flash his pearly whites.
“Whenever you talk real sweet to him, he just starts smiling,” Walton told The Dodo. “It’s like he’s saying, ‘Please love me.’”
When the pups were ready for adoption, the rescue posted a video of Joe showing off his impressive fetch skills — and he was adopted almost immediately.
“The whole litter is super sweet and playful,” Walton said. “Burreaux and his sister O are learning how to fetch, too.”
Knowing Burreaux had a different kind of charm, Wingate and Walton decided to showcase what made him special. He might not be a fetch expert yet, but his irresistible grin was a talent of its own.
“We thought, ‘He wants a home so badly he’s literally smiling to win people over,’” Walton said. So, they recorded a short clip of Burreaux smiling while being told what a good boy he was — and it quickly went viral.
The video of his heart-melting grin racked up over 40,000 views in just days. But despite his newfound internet fame, Burreaux and his sister O are still waiting for their forever home.
They already got their second chance when Wingate and Walton rescued them from a kill shelter. Now, they’re hoping for the final piece of the puzzle: a family to call their own.
If you’re interested in adopting Burreaux or O, visit the Humane Society of Northwest Louisiana’s website to fill out an application here.
To help other homeless puppies like Burreaux and his siblings, you can make a donation to the rescue.
