One animal rescuer has gone viral for sharing his adorable — and innovative — way he helps dogs and cats find their forever homes.
Cameron Shoppach, 31, is an employee at IndyHumane in Indianapolis, Indiana, who has been nicknamed the facility’s “Dangler in Chief” for exposing a technique known as “dangling” to test an animal’s temperament on social media.
As NOW TODAY reports, not only has Shoppach gone viral on Instagram and TikTok for his clips showing whether the furry friend’s personality is free-hanging or moving, but his videos have also led to the adoption of more than 20 dogs and contributed to fundraising campaigns on IndyHumane.
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Shoppach — whose job it is to get to know the dogs at the shelter and facilitate playgroups — explained NOW TODAY that he thought it would be fun to try a temperament test commonly used on the cats and dogs he works with every day.
After discovering he could also capture the dogs’ unique personalities, an IndyHumane employee told the store that he realized his hanging videos could highlight the animals at IndyHumane to potential adopters.
“I can show dogs that are being neglected,” he said.
Cameron Shoppach from @does.it.dangle.
does.it.dangle/ Instagram
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Shoppach advises the general public not to try hanging animals themselves, but a trained animal rescuer records the test in each of his videos. In the clips, Shoppach films himself individually playing with the dog (or cat) he singles out, then holds them securely for a hanging test to see if it’s within their instinct to sway back and forth or want to break away.
“Is that a gallows?” he asks before flashing an “X” or tick on the screen.
He also shares a little more information about the animals for adoption in the title of each post, from more details about their personalities to information about their backgrounds.
He told about how playful the dog named Tank is in the title of his video. “Tank is one of my favorite dogs at the shelter, he is also one of the longest staying dogs,” Shoppach wrote. “His presence in the kennel is terrible and he is almost immediately ignored. She will absolutely smother everyone she meets with love, kisses and cuddles. He has such a good heart and a fun personality.”
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After posting content since the fall, his signature @does.it.dangle account has amassed 12.2K followers on TikTok and 42.9K followers on Instagram.
“I wasn’t prepared … to see so many people so passionate and positive,” he said NOW TODAY. “It was definitely a nice little serotonin boost to see a whole goofy community of people just smiling and laughing.”
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NOW TODAY also reported that Shoppach’s videos directly helped IndyHumane raise nearly $5,500 for the Operation Pitstop program, which helps prevent overcrowding and discrimination against bully breeds by spaying and neutering them.
The IndyHumane employee often mentions the fundraiser in the titles of his posts, such as the one about a pit bull named Baxter, and includes direct links to the campaign via the video.
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education