When we first heard of the dog Snoop, we thought the name might have come from the Peanuts comic dog, Snoopy. Or maybe he was just plain nosey. But no. Snoop was named after the famed Long Beach, California, rapper Snoop Doggy Dogg, full stop.
Snoop (the canine, not the rapper) lives in the UK, in Bristol, with his owner, Elliott Ford, 30, giving the dog’s hip-hop street moniker a Coronation Street twist; Mr. Ford happens to love American rap music from across the pond, 5,000 miles away.
What’s most fascinating about Snoop isn’t his name, though, but how he got into Mr. Ford’s heart, came into his home, and subsequently found viral fame on Instagram for his particular habit—which garnered him a following of nearly 45,000 viewers tuning in to see his antics.
It all started eight years ago when Mr. Ford was hustling for an advertising publishing business in Bristol and had gone out for drinks with several of his colleagues. He noticed a homeless man on the street and, as the young professional isn’t one to turn his nose up, he stopped for a chat. He hoped to warm the less fortunate man’s heart.
“Everyone else was just walking past, ignoring him,” Mr. Ford told The Epoch Times. He saw the man had two dogs and a sign that read: “Can someone take my dog off me?” Growing concerned, Mr. Ford inquired, “Why are you giving away a dog? That is a lovely-looking dog.”
The bullmastiff looked to be 6 months old and his ribs were visible—he seemed to be malnourished from living on the streets.
“I got to chatting with the guy,” Mr. Ford told the newspaper.
The man said, “Look, I’ve got two dogs here. Tyson was given to me by my daughter whose boyfriend at the time had bought Tyson.”
The daughter could not take care of Tyson, so she offloaded him to her dad—who is homeless and now lay on the street before Mr. Ford.
“I can just raise enough money to feed my golden retriever, but I do not raise enough money to feed Tyson,” he said.
Feeling compelled by their plight, Mr. Ford said, “If you’re going to be here in about an hour or so, I’ll come back and I’ll get Tyson.”
“I’m homeless, where do you think I’m gonna go?” the man said.
So, away Mr. Ford went for drinks with his colleagues at the bar, before returning to find the homeless man with his two dogs exactly where he’d left them. As they loaded Tyson into Mr. Ford’s car, the homeless man’s eyes flooded with tears, causing Mr. Ford to hesitate.
“Don’t worry,” the man said. “I need you to do it.”
Looking back on the moment, Mr. Ford now believes Tyson knew he had been saved even though he looked nervous on the ride home, shivering in the backseat. Mr. Ford liked the name Tyson well enough but was more partial toward the West Coast rapper from America.
“Snoop sort of put his paw on my lap as we were driving back,” Mr. Ford said, “almost as a sign to say ‘thank you.’”
He said, “I didn’t mind the name Tyson, you know, Mike Tyson, professional boxer.
“I listened to a lot of music and rap music as well. Snoop Dogg is one of the best rappers in the world, and who I listened to.
“I just thought I'd name him after Snoop Dogg.”
The puppy took well to life in the countryside where Mr. Ford lives outside Bristol and was fed two meals a day until his ribs no longer showed. Knowing only the bustling big city until then, Snoop soon found heaven going on long walks outside with his new owner and his dachshund, Doris.
Now, after eight years, that puppy has grown into an adult dog, and as he grew so did a peculiar habit of his. Most dogs love carrying found objects like bones, shoes, or sticks. Snoop is fond of sticks, too, but his grew to ridiculous sizes as the years passed.
“He actually carries the entire tree branch,” Mr. Ford said. “He’ll carry humongous sticks.”
Unlike most dogs who drag large branches on the ground, Snoop finds the balancing point, carrying them right in the middle every time, his owner said.
“So, he’s a smart one as well,” he said. “A lot of people online find that quite funny, that he carries big sticks.”
Soon, Mr. Ford began posting videos of Snoop hauling his huge tree limbs on Instagram, attracting a following to match the dog’s oversized obsession. Mr. Ford now hopes to use Snoop’s fame to advocate adopting dogs without homes, as well as having kindness toward the homeless.
“Where I’m from there are homeless people everywhere,” he said. “Just a chat, a small little talk with the homeless person, goes such a long way.”
