A video, which is as equally heartwarming as it is heartbreaking, of a stray Shih Tzu's transformation has been viewed over 21 million times in the past day.
The video, which was uploaded by KC Pet Project, shows the dog arriving at the shelter with mats so heavy he appeared to be struggling to walk. KC Pet Project is a nonprofit organization based in Missouri and Kansas, with over 14 locations for animals to be adopted out.
"We can only guess how long it took for him to get into this condition, but one thing we know for sure is that life is about to get so much better for this boy," prefaced the video.
The dog, who has since been named Simon, initially weighed 20 pounds when he arrived at the shelter, but after two hours of staff shaving away at his individual mats, he weighed 13.5 pounds instead.
"He is skinny, he was covered in fleas, and will need to have dental surgery soon, but he's now receiving great medical care from our team and will start the healing process," KC Pet Project told Newsweek.
"We never know what we're gonna see in terms of their skin condition when we take off the matts, but surprisingly his skin is in fairly good shape," they explained in the clip.
Showing the before, during and after, viewers are able to watch the pain-staking process of the matts being shaved off. However, the result makes every moment worth it, as the Shih Tzu looks like a completely different, and a much healthier dog after.
KC Pet Project told Newsweek: "We are always so thankful for our team at KC Pet Project who put in hard work every day to create better lives for pets like him. Donations to our organization help pets like Simon each and every day that depend on our organization for medicine, veterinary care, vaccines, food, and hope."
KC Pet Project assumed the contract for all animal control services in Kansas City in December 2020, after the City of Kansas City had previously been responsible. Now, any time residents need help with, or find animals in need, KC Pet Project is the first port of call.
The organization also achieved "no-kill" status and created the largest no-kill animal shelter in the Kansas City metropolitan area. Before taking over, the KC Campus for Animal Care, where the organization works out of, had a euthanasia rate of 60 to 70 percent and was known as the "dog pound."
KC Pet Project's work hasn't gone unnoticed however, as the video has gained over 4.5 million likes, with users flooding the comments with messages of gratuity.
"Thankyou for taking care of him. Please continue doing that," wrote one TikTok user.
"He probably immediately felt the weight lifted off him as soon as he woke up. Poor thing," added another.
"How does a video of this poor pup make me cry so much. He deserves the world and the sight of him before just hearts my eyes," commented another user.
Update 6/16/21, 3:30 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from KC Pet Project.
