Severely matted dog in Kansas City goes viral after getting hair clipped
The animal shelter says there are plenty of people who want to adopt Simon
The animal shelter says there are plenty of people who want to adopt Simon
The animal shelter says there are plenty of people who want to adopt Simon
A severely matted 11-year-old Shih Tzu has become a social media star after video showed animal shelter workers clipped all that hair off.
It's a video seen around the world. The Shih-Tzu was brought to KC Pet Project after he was found wandering alone.
"It's jaw-dropping to see a dog in that condition, and just automatically you start to think where has this dog been?" said Tori Fugate, of KC Pet Project.
The shelter posted this video to TikTok of the dog they named Simon getting his matted hair shaved off. The process took two hours.
"Those mats, they gather up, it pulls on the skin, it's really painful and uncomfortable," Fugate said.
Now, Simon has newfound fame.
"Overnight, we had millions and millions of views," Fugate said.
In a matter of days, the TikTok video has surpassed 35 million views and garnered media attention from across the country and overseas.
"We did interviews with Germany yesterday so he's getting a lot of international fame," Fugate said. "I think that people just love to see this transformation process. We saw him at his worst whenever he came to us and just within a couple of hours, we were able to help him on his road to recovery."
Simon isn't letting it go to his head.
"(He's) very quiet, will just sit in your lap and hang out for a long time," Fugate said.
There are plenty of people who want to take this superstar home.
"We've had a lot of inquiries. We've had people say they're going to drive here from Canada to adopt him," Fugate laughed.
The shelter staff hopes his popularity also brings people in to adopt or foster other pets as they face an influx.
"Right now, we're getting 50 new animals a day here at KC Pet Project and so fostering is critically needed," Fugate said. "If you can open up your hearts and home to a pet like Simon, that would just make a world of a difference here during the summer months."
Simon is still on medical hold until he gets dental work done. There's no timeline for when he'll officially be up for adoption. You can donate to help Simon and other pets like him here.