Fostering a dog is such a kind thing to do, opening up your home to an animal in need who would otherwise be in a kennel. It’s usually only temporary, but sometimes dogs leave a big impression on their fosters that lasts for years.

One woman never forgot about a foster dog she took in over four years ago — but when he came back into her life in an unexpected way, she knew it was meant to be.

Katelyn Severt has fostered many dogs, but none have made such an impression on her as Nacho, who came into her life back in 2020.

Katelyn began fostering dogs from the Nebraska Humane Society during the COVID lockdowns. After two of her fosters quickly got adopted, the shelter trusted her with fostering a “diamond dog,” or a dog with behavioral issues, named Nacho.

Nacho was no easy dog to care for: Katelyn wrote that he caused some bruises and she was often on the phone with the NHS behavior team looking for advice. But despite all that, she fell in love with Nacho.

She even considered adopting him herself, but she was already taking in another dog, Cash, and couldn’t handle two large-breed dogs at home. After three months of fostering, Nacho was adopted by another family, but Katelyn wrote that she often wondered about him over the years.

“I’ve had about 15 fosters since 2020 and Nacho has been the hardest to say goodbye to,” Katelyn told People.

But four years later, Nacho would unexpectedly come back into her life. Last month, a friend noticed that Nacho — now named “Raiden” — was back on the Nebraska Humane Society. He was listed as an unclaimed stray who had been there for six weeks. Katelyn immediately recognized the dog’s bright blue eyes and photos she had taken years earlier.

Seeing her old friend in need of a home, Katelyn, now living in Ohio, drove all the way to Nebraska to get him. A heartwarming viral TikTok shows the moment the two old friends are reunited — she called it an “Adoption story 4.5 years in the making.”

@campkate.co Reintroducing Nacho – an adoption story 4.5 years in the making ✨ When COVID hit in early 2020, I decided to start fostering dogs. I met the behavior team at Nebraska Humane Society and for some reason unbeknownst to me, they entrusted me with fostering diamond dogs 😅 aka diamonds in the rough aka pups with a variety of behavior issues. My first two fosters got adopted quickly. Then I picked up this white-and-black-spotted-blue-eyed-strong-boy named Nacho as my third foster. Somewhere between the bruises he gave me, counters he surfed, bottles of wine he made me drink, and training tip phone calls with NHS behavior team, I fell in love with the little mans. As much as I wanted to adopt, I knew I was a few weeks away from bringing Cash home and I couldn’t fathom owning two large breed dogs at once. Three months into fostering, Nacho was adopted out and for the next four years I wondered about him often. I moved back to Ohio and in June of this year, Cash expectedly passed due to a ruptured tumor. It was rough and I miss her (still). I knew I couldn’t adopt again until it felt right. Fast forward to a week ago, I received a DM from a friend who noticed Nacho (now Raiden) back on NHS’s website. His second stint at NHS was approx 6 weeks as an unclaimed stray and it took me approx 2 seconds after seeing updated photos to know I had to drive back to Nebraska for him. So that’s what I did on Friday. He has been re-named back to Nacho, and is settling in so nicely like the king he is 👑 S/o to everyone who helped make this happen, especially Erica Young for fostering him this week until I could drive out there, @lindsey_anson for driving him halfway to Ohio to meet me, my dad for driving with me to get him. And, of course, Cash Girl because without her I truly don’t think all these pieces would have fallen into place ♥️ #dogreunion #adoptdontshop #rescuedog #nacho #columbus #ohio #omaha #nebraska #humanesociety #nhs #nebraskahumanesociety #columbusdogs #reunited ♬ All That Really Matters – ILLENIUM & Teddy Swims

Katelyn, who has returned the dog’s name back to Nacho, writing on TikTok that he is “settling in so nicely like the king he is” in his new home.

Life works in mysterious ways, and it’s clear fate brought these two old friends back together again when they needed each other. Katelyn’s dog Cash recently passed away, so now she has room in her home for Nacho.

“It sounds silly, but I truly think Cash helped put all the pieces back together so Nacho could come back into my life,” she told People.

And thankfully, Nacho gets along well with other dogs, so Katelyn has been able to return to fostering.

What a heartwarming story — it’s clear that Katelyn and Nacho were meant to be together. Though it took over four years, fate brought them back together again right when they needed each other.

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Family surrenders dog to shelter and asks for him to be put down — then they realize he’s not alone

An animal rescue was shocked when a family surrendered a healthy dog asking for him to be euthanized — and made an even more disheartening discovery when the dog found a familiar face at the shelter.

In May, Hearts for Paws, a rescue based in California, shared the sad story of a a 3-year-old black Labrador retriever who had been surrendered to their care.

The dog, named Godric, was brought him by his family after he reportedly bit their baby who had crawled into his food bowl. But the family didn’t just want to give their dog up — they also wanted Godric to be euthanized.

Thankfully the shelter didn’t go through with putting Godric to sleep, and Hearts for Paws reported that he was a “sweet” dog. “It was hard to believe his family wanted him euthanized,” they wrote in a video.

But when they saw Godric playing with another dog in their yard, it led to another heartbreaking discovery: the other dog, 6-year-old Sadie, had been surrendered by the very same family weeks prior, reportedly because she “growled” at the baby.

“The family requested the shelter euthanize them both,” Hearts for Paws wrote.

It’s understandable that parents would be protective of their newborn baby — “No one wants a baby getting hurt,” Hearts for Paws wrote — but the rescue said that even if they wanted to get rid of their dogs, it was their responsibility to rehome them, and specifically asking for them to be euthanized was uncalled for.

They also wrote that the dogs’ behavior did not necessarily make them aggressive — in fact they called them “exceptionally sweet.”

“ANY dog has the potential to bite under unfair circumstances & growling shouldn’t be punished nor should it be a death sentence; growling is how dogs communicate & vital to ensure bites don’t happen,” they wrote.

Many people online were outraged and upset by the story. “Praying that this family never tries to get another dog again,” one comment reads. “Some people don’t deserve dogs.”

“I volunteer at a shelter and the amount of dogs surrendered for being “aggressive” and then they turn out to be the sweetest,” another wrote. “People are the problem, we are able to re-home them all to a family that deserves them!”

Hearts for Paws clarified that the family did not adopt Godric and Sadie from them; they speculated that they bought them from a breeder.

In an update this month, they wrote that Godric was in a foster-to-adopt home, and Sadie became the shelter’s longest resident before being transferred to Miranda’s Rescue in Fortuna, California, and is reportedly still looking for a home.

It’s heartbreaking that both these dogs were surrendered and left to be euthanized, but we’re glad their lives were spared and hope they find perfect homes soon ❤️

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