Pregnant dog about to be put down when something incredible happened

A man has shared his account of rushing to save a pregnant German Shepherd from his local animal shelter, as she was next in line to be put down. And the dog’s reaction is guaranteed to melt your heart.

While animal shelters provide a wonderful opportunity to give pets such as dogs and cats a second chance at finding their forever home, they are frequently far busier than their facilities are designed to accommodate.

Most animal shelters report that the summer months, as well as the period following major holidays, represent their most hectic times. During these periods, intake rates often surge while adoptions may decline, resulting in severe overcrowding within their facilities.

This forces shelters into the heartbreaking position of having to put some animals down to make space for others, particularly those who have struggled to find new owners. During such difficult times, volunteers frequently step in to take at-risk pets home in a bid to spare their lives.

One such individual is Joey Graceffa, a Los Angeles-based influencer who regularly takes to social media to document his efforts rescuing vulnerable dogs and rehoming them with loving families. In a recent TikTok video, Joey revealed he was preparing to rescue a pregnant German Shepherd who was just days away from giving birth.

“I’m here at the animal shelter because a pregnant dog was posted that is on the euthanasia list and they’re about to put her down, so let’s go see if we can rescue her and get her out of here,” Joey said at the start of his video, positioned in his car outside the animal shelter.

The footage then cut to reveal the dog in question, lying on a bed within the shelter, with a frightened expression in her eyes while breathing rapidly, evidently feeling distressed.

The door to her cage swung open and she instantly rose to her feet to emerge. The footage then jumped forward to show the dog now on a lead as they made their way out of the shelter, with dogs barking in kennels on either side of their route.

The expectant dog appeared uncertain of what to do, as she did accompany the shelter worker from the room, but attempted her utmost to escape from the lead, plainly not trusting where they were heading.

But her behaviour transformed the instant Joey accompanied her outside of the shelter and towards his vehicle, she remained walking as near to him as feasible. The footage then advanced once more to her sitting calmly inside the crate Joey had positioned in his car.

“Oh my god, your eyes are so beautiful,” Joey told her as she glanced around behind him. He then hoisted the crate from his car, before releasing her into his garage to investigate.

“Okay, come one,” he said encouragingly. She cautiously emerged from the crate, displaying her considerable baby bump, before dashing back into the garage to shelter in a corner.

“You could just tell that she ad a lot of anxiety and she’d clearly been through a lot in her life and earning her trust is going to take some work, but I was up for the challenge,” Joe said, as the footage continued to show the timid dog tentatively approaching Joey’s hand to receive some fuss.

He then seized the opportunity, having gained her confidence, to give her a bath outside in the garden, with Joey noting she was filthy and had a terrible smell. He subsequently let her roam freely back in the garden to explore at her own pace.

“And I think that’s when something shifted and she finally felt safe and, I got my first kiss from her you guys,” he said, as the footage captured her nestled against his legs before planting kisses on his hand.

“She even rolled over and showed me her belly, and you could just see the stress evaporate from her. And I’m just so glad that I got her out of that shelter, and now we’re ready for puppies,” he told viewers.

Just two days later, Joey returned to his TikTok to announce that the dog had successfully given birth to nine puppies, with the delighted new family continuing to receive endless love and care from Joey.