Of the more than 7.7 billion people in the world, nearly one out of every seven people use Instagram daily.
Many produce content to share with friends, family and those they know, while some others, particularly of the four-footed variety, aren’t online for the clicks, they’re there to spread smiles.
“Social media is an awesome platform to be a part of, especially the dog community, it’s all so close and everyone feels so connected,” said Katy Marshall, who runs the account of Miss Khloe Rose, her schnauzer who is also a registered therapy dog. “It’s all so personal, and I really enjoy this aspect of the Instagram community.”
A post shared by Khloe Rose© (@miss_khloe_rose) on
Another member of that community is Moose, a golden retriever, who lives with the Sexton family in Aurora. Like Khloe, Moose is a registered therapy pet who volunteers at local hospitals, helping to raise the spirits of patients. And for the Sextons, that’s something that runs in the family.
“I [volunteered] with our previous dog Buckeye and then when Moose came along, I continued the tradition, said Moose’s owner Gerry Sexton. “Some of the cute videos are of him just doing natural things like playing with his ball or watching himself on the iPad or just playing in the snow and everything.”
A post shared by Moosethegoldenretriever (@moosethegoldenretriever) on
Even though Moose is just two years old, his family says he knows the difference between working and playing. “When Moose is a therapy dog, he’s like a child in church," Sexton said. “It’s like when you tell a child to act a certain way, in church and school, so he acts like that when he’s a therapy dog and when he’s at home he’s more playful -- he thinks everybody comes over to see him. He’s just a happy dog and people love to see him.”
With each dog comes a different personality, something the Rybak family knows well. They say their two basset hounds, Admiral Alfred P. Woofington (Alfie for shot) and Lord Barnabus Wigglebottom III, Grand Duke of Droolridge (Barney for short), are polar opposites.
“Alf is just stubborn and lazy, and he makes the rules, said Kate Rybak, owner and self-proclaimed personal assistant to the dogs. “He does what I call a ‘flat basset.’ Once we get past the first house on the street, he throws himself on the ground and refuses to walk… so we got him a wagon and we put him in the wagon. Meanwhile, Lord Barnabus, he is like an energizer bunny, he’s just go, go, go, go, go.”
A post shared by Admiral Alfred P Woofington (@alfiewoofington) on
With nearly 40,000 followers combined, the adoration and adulation of so many is not what these pet parents expected in their wildest dreams.
“It’s really cool because now I have friends in Norway, I have friends in Germany, and Hong Kong,” said Marshall, Khloe’s owner. “We’re all pen pals and we send each other gifts all the time, so it’s awesome to bring happiness to people all over the world.”
The same goes for Kate Rybak who started posting after Alfie threw a temper tantrum as a puppy.
“It’s wild, last year I went to London because of these guys,” she said. “I have friends all over the globe who have basset hounds. We have a local group, ‘A Basset is an Asset.’ It’s just wild, I never thought that staring an Instagram page would have this effect.”
“It’s really cool," Marshall said, “to help other people and make them feel good about themselves and bring happiness into their lives on that day or if they follow us on Instagram, on a daily basis."
