Hearts Melt Over Reactive Dog’s Transformation After Owners Get New Puppy

A woman who was often brought to tears by her reactive dog’s behavior made the difficult decision to introduce a puppy into the family, and now they are an inseparable duo.

In February 2022, Rocky, a 6-year-old Patterdale terrier, had his world turned upside down when his owner died. He was taken in by his owner’s granddaughter, Laura Kate Dean, who did her best to help him heal.

Dean, a registered veterinary nurse from the U.K, told Newsweek that Rocky struggles with other dogs, new people, and certain sounds. It has been challenging for Dean to adjust, but Rocky has become her “soul dog” and she never wanted to give up on him.

“Rocky went from a nice quiet life, to being exposed to many things all at once, which was difficult as he had just lost his best friend and the home he felt safe in,” Dean said.

She continued: “Before training, I struggled with Rocky’s reactivity. I hated seeing him so frustrated on walks, and it caused us both lots of stress. Rocky’s behavior on walks would drive me to actual tears. You must always be on the ball, making sure no people or dogs are around each corner.”

Dean and her partner have been training Rocky for two years, and they have seen huge improvements. They can finally take him on calm walks, and if he ever does slip up, they know how to help him in those instances.

For a while, Dean toyed with the idea of getting another dog, but she was reluctant due to Rocky’s reactive behavior. She was “scared he’d hurt the puppy out of fear,” and she didn’t want to cause him any distress in his own home.

But after learning how to handle his triggers, Dean finally took the leap in April 2025. She and her partner brought home Eira, a Labrador retriever who is 4 months old at the time of writing.

“When we first introduced them, Rocky was not happy,” Dean said. “For safety, we muzzled Rocky until we were happy he would not correct the puppy too harshly. Because Rocky is reactive, he did try to correct her, lunging and growling if Eira got too close.

“After a few days, we were happy with how Rocky was correcting the puppy with the muzzle on, so we removed it. Now, they are best friends, and they play all the time. It’s actually Rocky who initiates playing most of the time, which is funny considering how much he hated his new friend to begin with,” Dean continued.

Dean received her fair share of comments and questions when she told people she was getting a puppy. It was hard not to let that feed the doubts in the back of her mind, but she had faith in Rocky throughout.

Now, seeing him play so lovingly with Eira brings tears to her eyes once more—but for a much-happier reason. Indeed, sometimes she even has to separate the dogs to stop them playing when they need water or a rest.

“Eira has helped stimulate Rocky’s brain a lot more, which makes him less reactive. She is the best gift, and was exactly what our small family needed,” Dean told Newsweek.

The Online Response

In April, Dean shared a video on TikTok (@laurakatearts) showing the “beautiful friendship” between the two pups. The footage shows Rocky lunging at Eira in the early days, before revealing how much their bond has transformed. The duo can be seen playing together and laying by each other’s side.

In the days since it was shared, the TikTok video has gone viral with over 5.9 million views and more than 939,000 likes at the time of writing.

Dean didn’t expect the clip to amass so much attention, but she hopes it will change the stigma surrounding reactive dogs. Rocky remains a work in progress, but he has made so much progress and Dean wants people to see that he was never “a bad dog” as some may think.

She continued: “The introduction of a reactive dog and a puppy should not be taken lightly. My advice would be to find a quality dog trainer who has experience with reactivity, along with muzzle training.”

The friendship between Eira and Rocky has melted hearts online, leading to more than 4,300 comments since the clip went viral.

One comment reads: “You guys worked so hard and so did he.”

Another TikTok user wrote: “Sometimes dogs don’t know how to be a dog, they just need a friend to show them!”

A third person added: “I feel like every dog owner with a reactive dog needs to know their dog isn’t horrible. they just need time.”

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