A rescue dog’s adorable habit that she still does even a year after being adopted by her family has melted hearts across the internet, and it has left many thinking the same thing.
Grace, the 18-month-old Staffordshire terrier and pit bull mix, was adopted by Carrie Moore and her husband Eddie in November 2024. The sweet pup was found abandoned on the side of the road, looking severely malnourished and in desperate need of care.
The couple already have a house full of dogs, but they didn’t hesitate to take Grace in, too. It took several weeks to get Grace back to full strength after rescuing her, but Moore, of Lexington, South Carolina, told Newsweek that the pup is such “a cuddle bug” now. In fact, Grace has developed quite the bond with Eddie and “always demands” his attention.
“She is sweet and a little feisty; she talks back when I try to correct her and then runs to her dad,” Moore said. “You will find her sitting or lying on him or pushed up against him somehow. However, when she is outside of our home, she doesn’t say a word and she holds on tight.”
Indeed, Grace has developed a heartwarming habit that she does throughout any car journey. She holds onto Eddie’s arm and leans against him as he drives. Moore couldn’t resist capturing a video of the sweet moment and shared it on TikTok (@thegoodshepherdofsc). The clip showing why she “still holds on” has touched so many hearts online, leading to more than 71,800 views and over 15,700 likes at the time of writing.
“She holds onto him as if holding her breath until we got back home. In the video, you can also see my husband holding her paw and rubbing it so she knows he has her and will not let anything happen to her,” Moore said.
She continued: “The funny thing is, we were driving home from her vet appointment, and she was so exhausted and quietly overwhelmed that, when she got in the truck, she just melted into his arm and wouldn’t let go. I saw him holding her paw, and they were just so sweet with each other.”
While the couple don’t know anything about Grace’s past, it is clear that she was mistreated as a young pup. A DNA test suggested that she should weigh around 55 to 75 pounds, but Grace remains at just 38 pounds. A veterinarian suggested this was a result of malnutrition during the early stages of development.
Grace is just one of the couple’s nine dogs who range from 12 years old to just 12 months old. All the pups are incredibly loving and amusing in their own way, as Moore said that it’s “like having nine additional children” at times. Grace gets on with all the other dogs, but has become especially close with Benjamin Matlock, a 115-pound German shepherd rescue.
Grace came into their lives at a particularly difficult time as the couple had lost their previous mixed breed, named Venus, and Eddie’s health was deteriorating due to kidney failure. When he found Grace by the side of the road, it felt like a sign from Venus as her markings were almost identical.
“Grace is the apple of my husband’s eye. I felt like Venus sent her from heaven to brighten his spirits and give him the unconditional love that she was no longer able to provide,” Moore said.
The TikTok video of Grace holding onto her owner in the car has certainly captured attention online, leading to more than 1,300 comments so far.
One comment reads: “This is sad, she remembers being dumped, probably!”
Another TikTok user wrote: “She’s so scared of going back. Thanks for saving that precious baby.”
A third person replied: “When she knows love for the first time, she knows.”
