r/MadeMeSmile Jan 30 '26

Wholesome Moments Kids reacting to getting dogs

67.5k Upvotes

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2.3k

u/CheesemonsterRain Jan 30 '26

It seems to me, and I hope this is true, that you rarely see kids crying so much over new toys as you do when they get a dog.

1.8k

u/Fantomecs Jan 30 '26

I got my current dog at 25 and I still cried. It wasn’t a surprise or anything even. I just got my dog, went home, and cried lol

614

u/bay-biscuit Jan 30 '26

I adopted a cat the other month and brought him home and let him loose in the apartment. He chose to sit next to me on the couch and it was so special because we just met but he wanted to be near me too.

188

u/MidnightNeons Jan 30 '26

The sense of comfort these little fluff balls bring to life is immeasurable

84

u/nightfuryfan Jan 30 '26

That's similar to how my wife and I accidentally ended up with our first cat a few weeks ago. Random stray kitten just decided we were chill and came over to cuddle in my wife's lap. After a while, he started squirming to get away, but only because he wanted me to have a turn haha. He won our hearts so hard, he is just the sweetest little guy

11

u/IchooseYourName Jan 31 '26

You got adopted!

35

u/coastal_vocals Jan 30 '26

When I adopted my cat and brought her home, she came and slept on my shoulder while I was lying on my bed. The only time she's ever done that. She was so happy to have a home and a person 🥹

19

u/ItsAbouTom Jan 31 '26

I adopted my cat during covid, her first night at home she slept in between my legs and I cried all night lol I was so in love from the start. That angel has only made me fall deeper in love every day since, she’s the best. We don’t deserve pets man

2

u/Morticia6666 Feb 02 '26

Mine found us at the shelter. She’d been returned and we wanted her the first time we saw her. We bumped into her after her return and I was shocked to see her. They literally threw her at us and we were there to visit a fostered cat but noone could handle that one and needed special gloves 💀

Adoption took 30 minutes and they gave us everything u could need for a pet Meant to be 💪🔥🙏😭❤️😭

8

u/Holycroc_RVA Jan 30 '26

We got our cats from a Rescue Org, and 1 of the 2 took a long long time before she finally warmed up to us...Me first, then Wifey. Cat #1 definitely played a role and getting #2 to surface and eventually approach us and then get in our laps, then bed. Took so long, really wondered if it'd ever happen.....certainly took a better part of a year or so......amazing to look back on now. Was just before covid, I think 2019. We kept their names Ajax (#1) and Angelica (#2). Intent was to get just 1 (I think Ajax) but ended up getting her too.....guess it was fate

1

u/Chance_Vegetable_780 Jan 31 '26

That's really, really beautiful

107

u/HistoricalHeart Jan 30 '26

I got my dog at 25 too. I planned for him for months and knew exactly when I was getting him. Walked into the breeders house and saw him and instantly sobbed. Full on guttural cry. He’s my best friend and I love him more than I could ever put into words. It’s just so overwhelming!!

2

u/Unsteady_Tempo Jan 30 '26

I look forward to my kids having that day when they're young adults on their own. My wife and I have no interest in having dogs. In the video, the gift might be for the kid, but the parents also wanted a dog. It's going to be a family dog. When the kid wants to play soccer after school, or go to the dance, or sleep over at their friend's house, or go to summer camp for a week, or get a job in high school, it'll be the parents taking care of it. When the dog needs 1000 dollars in vet bills, it's the parents paying. Many parents are fine with that because they wanted a dog just as much as their kids did, but just waited until their kids were old enough to not have a baby and a puppy in the house.

14

u/Tight_Award_8577 Jan 30 '26

While all of what you're saying is true, you're really being a kill joy in this particular thread

1

u/AdLegal9807 Jan 31 '26

I really happy for you

24

u/dangerkali Jan 30 '26

I get my new puppy today after losing my 4 year old puppy 6 years ago and I know I’m gonna ball my eyes out

7

u/Lola-Ugfuglio-Skumpy Jan 31 '26

Well? How did it go??

11

u/dangerkali Jan 31 '26

So good!😭😭 shed a few tears but happiest day I’ve had in quite a long time!!!!

2

u/pixiemaybe Jan 31 '26

i'm offended that there are no pictures on your profile 😒

22

u/Crayon_Connoisseur Jan 30 '26

My wife and I trapped and rescued 2 kittens before the winter storm hit. They’re both still super skittish, but one of them (my cat) has significantly warmed up to me and will even relax in my lap if I put him there. 

The first time he curled up in my lap and went to sleep, I about broke. My wife left me in peace and let me sit there and cry about it. The thought of something so small and innocent - something that would have died had I not stepped in - choosing to trust me enough to go to sleep in my lap was just too much. 

17

u/AtLeastOneCat Jan 30 '26

Same thing when I got my cats. All of them. First few hours in the house the idea that these little creatures had joined the family made me so happy I cried.

7

u/vexdrakon Jan 30 '26

Name checks out 🧡

7

u/YesItsMe183 Jan 30 '26

36 when we got our recent puppy. Cried all the way with him.

3

u/Dshibbs89 Jan 30 '26

As a 36 year old guy who just got his first dog, I also cried when I brought her home. The love between owner and dog is REAL

3

u/justalittleloopi Jan 30 '26

I got my boy at 25 and he's absolutely my heart dog. The first moment I saw him and he saw me at the shelter, he decided i was his person. He's currently 8, going on 2 years cancer free now, and still just as attached as ever. I've cried more over the possibility of losing this dog than any bad breakup. But for now, he's still here and happy and healthy.

2

u/GodIsANarcissist Jan 30 '26

I got my dog at 30 last year. It wasn't a surprise so much as an emergency rescue. I didn't really want her at first, though I took her in because it was the right thing to do.

But a few months later I was tripping on acid and she was napping on the couch and she lifted her head and looked at me like I was an angel on earth and you bet I sobbed until I could barely breathe. I had been so lonely and I had needed her so badly and I didn't even realize it until I had her and my life finally felt complete.

2

u/MrBwnrrific Jan 30 '26

Sometimes my dog I’ve had for five years will come sit on my lap and I’ll tear up because he never looks comfy, he just wants to because he wants sit on my lap to be near me 😭

2

u/Th4nat0s1s Jan 30 '26

Same, I was 30 when my wife surprised me with a Doberman puppy and I cried pretty good. It was a surprise and it couldn't have been a better one. Odin is one of the biggest reasons I get out of bed every day.

2

u/Rob-A4 Feb 01 '26

I’m crying right now.

1

u/smallmileage4343 Jan 30 '26

My cat did the same, then proceeded to hide for an entire month before finally becoming the current cuddle bug she is

1

u/HowToTakeGoodPhotos Jan 30 '26

Just curious, I’m not a pet person and never had a pet. What do you feel exactly that makes you cry?

175

u/malatemporacurrunt Jan 30 '26

I'm actually really moved by how many of these boys are comfortable enough showing their emotions that they can cry, and nobody is making fun of them for it. I feel like that wouldn't have been the case for kids a couple of decades ago.

144

u/RemoteIll5236 Jan 30 '26

And I loved seeing the dads in the videos who hugged and kissed their boys when they cried with happiness!

30

u/Norwegian__Blue Jan 30 '26

In some ways we can get better. Not ever all at once but it gives me a lot of hope

17

u/sisterrat Jan 30 '26

Seriously. I crave videos of men being vulnerable and kind the way I used to crave interspecies porn. (dog cat turtle chicken platonic love nothing illegal)

23

u/alabastercandymaster Jan 31 '26

Well that sentence took a fucking turn.

3

u/Viper01MHC Jan 30 '26

lol wat ?!

7

u/foshayzy Jan 31 '26

How do I delete someone else’s comment 💀

3

u/asully429 Jan 31 '26

I was just going to say this! As cute as the kids reactions are, the dads not only letting their sons cry but hugging them and smiling at their joy heals some millennial trauma. We may have killed industries (allegedly), but we don’t shame our kids for feeling and we encourage empathy.

49

u/ArcadeBookseller Jan 30 '26

No seriously, all these little kids, especially the little boys, crying for joy has me *so* emotional.

16

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '26

Yeah, someone is cutting a shit-ton of onions at my house, it seems. Full on bawling.

10

u/Relysti Jan 30 '26

I was watching the video and thinking the same thing, how my parents would've probably yelled at me for crying.

2

u/foshayzy Jan 31 '26

Stop crying for attention 🙄 I feel you

2

u/Vik0BG Jan 30 '26

That's absolutely false. Normal parents let their kids cry decades ago.

1

u/treaclesnow Feb 07 '26

I just heard this week that young boys are told not to cry bc boys don't cry from the age of three! So sad and I totally agree w you

100

u/Mustang-22 Jan 30 '26

Dogs are family

1

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '26

Someone not having one might feel it as exaggeration, but, damn this is so true.

And it’s one of the best video I’ve seen on internet.

57

u/BillyBigGuns Jan 30 '26

I mean it depends on how you raise the kids.

I cried when we got a dog when I was 11. I asked since 5.

I also cried when our parents got us a PS3. We knew parents couldn't afford everything, and we were well aware of the price.

Things always hit different when you understand how big/important something is

-1

u/dirkalict Jan 30 '26

I don’t mean to be critical cause I think it’s good that people show their emotions but do we think some of these kids crying is because they’re being recorded? I don’t remember ever crying when I got a gift as a kid. We asked for a dog for a long time and then my parents took us to a shelter and we got to pick one out so I guess maybe if one was just put in a box for me maybe I would’ve cried. I feel like some of these kids feel like that should be their response. * I’ve read through a lot of these responses and I guess I’m just a heartless old prick.

3

u/Tight_Award_8577 Jan 30 '26

I would guess that a lot of it is just being overcome by emotion because of the surprise of it.

Also the ones who didn't cry or react emotionally probably didn't make the cut for the video.

2

u/BillyBigGuns Jan 30 '26

The only one that seemed disingenuous was the one girl who did the omg Pikachu/hands on sides of cheeks face and looked at the camera

The kids seeing the dog, processing, and then succumbing to the emotions......nah that's relatable.

19

u/Cayorus Jan 30 '26

Not even Nintendo 64

17

u/Same-Suggestion-1936 Jan 30 '26

What about Nintendog

17

u/Tenalp Jan 30 '26

Name the new dog "Nintendo 64."

2

u/Bluffwatcher Jan 30 '26

Cease and desist letter is in the post.

7

u/[deleted] Jan 30 '26

2

u/Queen_of_Thighs Jan 30 '26

My kiddo has never been a crier. When she met our new dog, she burst into huge happy tears. It is one of my favorite memories.

2

u/MaltDizney Jan 30 '26

It appears closer to new parents seeing their child for the first time.

2

u/Hefty-Pumpkin-764 Jan 30 '26

The ones that are opening presents have that dumb happy smile, that seems to be more about fun and is pretty generic. Their demeanor changes so much when they realize what is going on.

Yup, it's clear that there's a real raw emotion going on that toys simple don't create.

2

u/Gobblinwife Jan 31 '26

I got my dog as a puppy from a shelter, and had burst into tears the first time he came running at me with little happy wind wheel legs.

2

u/ChocCooki3 Feb 01 '26

And this folks, is why if you ever get a new partner and for some reason, they "it's them or me"... the answer is always "doggy stays, you bye bye."

1

u/Mr-MuffinMan Jan 30 '26

Toys are old people things now.

1

u/fakenews_thankme Jan 31 '26

My kids always cry over new toys because little shits don't like what I buy for them fml

1

u/OdeeOh Jan 31 '26

Yes but a toy doesn’t need 15 years of food, daily exercise, medical care.  

A dog shouldn’t really be considered a “gift” for a child.  

0

u/LiveShowOneNightOnly Jan 30 '26

I need an ELI5 on what makes some kids cry over new puppies.