“The shelter staff thought they might have been too late.”
Published on Sep 26, 2025 at 3:04 PM
When Snoots arrived at Austin Pets Alive! (APA!), it seemed like he was barely clinging to life.
“He was unresponsive, and the shelter staff thought they might have been too late,” Luis Sanchez, director of public relations and communications at APA!, told The Dodo.
Despite his odds, the shelter staff cared for Snoots like any other patient. They fed him dinner, gave him top-notch vet care and treated him with medications to help him heal. Above all, they showed him love. He was put into a kennel for a good night’s rest.
The next day, Snoots had somehow come back to life.
“He greeted the shelter’s vets the next morning at his kennel door, looking like a real dog again,” Sanchez said.
Snoots was at death’s door, but after receiving so much love from the APA! staff, he decided he wasn’t ready to go yet, because now he had something to fight for.
Snoots is 12 years old and weighs only 5 pounds. Even with his comeback, the shelter doesn’t know how much time he has left. It doesn’t matter, though, because for the rest of his days, he’ll know nothing but love and compassion. APA! will make sure of it.
“Despite everything, he’s a total sweetie pie and just wants to be held,” Sanchez said. “He doesn’t need much. Still, APA! is prepared to offer him the world as long as he’s in it.”
Snoots is now in a loving hospice foster home, where he’ll spend the time he has left snuggling with his people and being doted on day and night. The sweet senior pup had almost given up, but when he got a little taste of love, he realized he had a little life left in him.
If you’d like to help Snoots, you can donate to APA!.
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Rescue Dog Gets So Excited To Sing With Mom In Holiday Video Every Year
“She takes it very seriously.”
In April 2020, a small dog ran in front of a couple’s car on a road in Palm Springs. The dog had been living alone in a bush in the desert, and the couple could tell she needed a real home. First, they brought the dog to the vet and then for a special meeting in a parking lot.
“After she was cleared by the vet’s office, we met halfway,” Mary Ransom, the couple’s mom/mother-in-law, told The Dodo. “In a rainy parking lot in Paso Robles, I met my little girl, and it was truly love at first sight. We immediately connected and have been inseparable ever since.”
Not long after adopting Laney, Ransom was singing “Happy Birthday” to one of her grandkids when Laney decided she just had to join in. That was when Ransom discovered Laney’s passion for singing, and how much she loves performing with her mom. Ransom wanted to give Laney more opportunities to show off her voice, so that holiday season, she came up with the best idea — to create a holiday card video of her and Laney singing together.
“It was during the pandemic, so it was so hard not seeing everyone,” Ransom said. “A regular card just didn’t seem to cut it at that time, and since Laney was the newest [addition] to our lives, of course I had to include her. Being a grief therapist, my main goal is to bring a little happiness, and I’ve always found the holidays were a very important time to try to reach out to not just my friends and family, but those I know who are going through a tough time. I’ve always joked around about my singing, so putting together a card with a little carol seemed appropriate — it just so happened I had found a perfect partner to harmonize with.”
Now, every year in December, Laney and her mom send out holiday videos to their friends and family, singing a festive song to bring everyone a little holiday cheer. The pair always dress up, and Laney can’t wait for the song to start so she and her mom can perform together.
“She takes it very seriously and loves to sing with her mama,” Ransom said. “After every video, she gets the zoomies around the house with a giant smile on her face. I think she knows that she is spreading joy.”
Ransom’s friends and family get a huge kick out of the holiday videos and look forward to them every year. Someone even decided to share this year’s video on TikTok — and the entire world quickly fell in love with Ransom and Laney.
“Every year, the list gets a little bigger with people who want to see the videos, but this year is obviously a little more than expected,” Ransom said.
Ransom and Laney always just wanted to spread joy to their loved ones, and they’re both thrilled that they were able to take that joy and spread it to people all over the world.
“I was and am in total disbelief,” Ransom said. “I had never planned on uploading anything to social media and certainly had no intention of ever going ‘viral!’ However, the outpouring of incredible comments and love has been so incredible and humbling. I’m so happy that Laney and I can bring some joy to people during the holidays.”
Laney went from being abandoned in the desert to singing holiday songs for the entire world to hear, and she couldn’t be happier about it.
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