Shelter Dog About To Be Euthanized Saved at the ‘Last Second’ by One Test

A dog on his way to being euthanized was saved at the very last minute thanks to a successful cat test.

Ozzy, a black bully breed living in an Oklahoma animal shelter, already had the odds stacked against him. Such dogs are often viewed as aggressive and unfriendly, conjuring up fear. Plus, the colour of Ozzy’s fur didn’t help either.

Animals with black fur are adopted less often as people associate the color with bad luck and misfortune, according to an article from Dogster.

It looked like Ozzy’s fate was sealed. While being walked to his euthanasia appointment, employees at his shelter decided to pull him in for a cat test at the “last second” because a potential adopter wanted to see how he would do with felines since they had four at home.

In a February 27 Instagram video posted to the account @life.with.rescuess, the shelter workers held up a cat to Ozzy to see how he would react. He sniffed with interest for a few seconds before backing away and giving the cat space—a sign he passed the test.

The adopters, who posted the video, shared that they did not realize the shelter would perform the test in this manner, noting its potentially unsafe method. They are thankful the cat was not harmed.

Within a few days, Ozzy was transported to his forever home in Colorado, where he now lives with five other rescue animals.

Part of the caption for the video reads: “Ozzy wants to remind you to consider the underdog when looking to add a new companion to your life. Take a chance on the ‘scary’ looking ones, the shy ones, the ones who need a little extra training. They deserve a chance, too.”

Newsweek reached out to @life.with.rescuess via Instagram for comment.

Instagram Reacts

According to one of the million viewers who watched the Instagram video, Ozzy “won the lottery.”

“Good boy Ozzie…you showed the world what a good boy you are!! Black animals are always the last to get adopted!” another person wrote.

A different person added: “So happy to know he wasn’t taken from this life. Also happy he has new home. I hope that he can live the rest of his days happy and joyful.”

A third commented: “Thank you so much for saving that sweet baby.”

However, several users expressed their concern about the cat test method shown in the video. Ozzy’s owners stressed that they were unaware of how the shelter tested his tolerance of cats. They only received a text with the video footage of the test afterward.

The adopter commented: “It’s a rural shelter, aka 90 hold for animals, and they do not have the proper resources for proper education…”

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