Have you ever gone so long without seeing a friend or a family member that you’re almost worried you won’t recognize them anymore?
Luckily, us humans become pretty good at remembering our close friends and loved ones once we hit a certain age – though if you asked a toddler to pick their parents out of a line-up, they might struggle.
Just as small children are less likely to remember a missing parent, so are young dogs.
One German Shephard, who had been a growing pup when her owner had left for army deployment to Kuwait, almost didn’t recognize her when she finally returned home.
The video, which was posted by YouTuber knox2613 a year ago in November 2019, quickly reached viral status, with more than 6 million views to this day.
It’s unsurprising that the vid has proved such a hit, as it really is one of the cutest moments caught on camera.
The video begins by showing the soldier daughter standing in uniform by the front door. Then the camera pans around, and Seiko the German Shephard runs to the entrance hallway and heads to the person who’s recording.
For a moment, Seiko looks a little concerned. She runs up to her owner, then pauses and hovers back, her ears flat against her head. It’s likely that to Seiko, her owner smells, looks and behaves completely differently from her former self before she was shipped out.
This happens several times – Seiko approaches the woman, then barks and retreats.
But finally, it must click for Seiko that an old loved one has returned home, and she buries her head in the woman’s hands, then jumps up, licking her face.
The more time Seiko spends with her owner, the more excited she gets. She jumps up, knocking her owner backwards, then spins in a circle, wagging her tail so fast it’s almost a blur. Seiko’s owner says,
“Do you remember me now?”
Though it’s quite clear from the German Shephard’s actions that the answer is a big “yes”!
Like many people on YouTube, knox2613, the poster of the video, had one random viral hit – but still posts other videos of Seiko regularly.
It seems the German Shephard is a big softie, with one video showing a 2-year-old little girl feeding the friendly giant, who gently nibbles the food out of her hand.
A dog like Seiko might look a little intimidating to some people, but it’s clear she has a heart of gold.
The great thing about dogs like Seiko is that you can always guarantee they’ll be excited to see you.
Whether you’ve had a terrible day at work or you’ve fallen out with a friend or a family member, a dog will never let you down. As Seiko proved – even if it took her a second to remember her owner!
The video has attracted more than 5,000 comments, some of which are pretty hilarious.
“Hoomans: Seeing is believing
Dogs: Sniffing is believing”
You can watch the touching moment when the pair are reunited in the video below.
