Pug Caught Staring at His Christmas Stocking Melts Hearts: 'Too Excited'

A pug named Gus has melted hearts online after his owner shared a video of him patiently "counting down the days until Christmas" while staring at the gift that he can't have yet.

In the viral clip shared on TikTok on Thursday by the dog's owner, under the username Goth_pack, Gus can be seen sitting by the fireplace, staring at the stocking containing a new toy that he's not allowed to have until Christmas Day.

The footage comes with a caption that says: "When your girlfriend put out your [pug's] stocking and now he's counting down the days until Christmas." The owner also wrote: "He's not taking his eyes off that new toy."

And when asked why they put the stocking up so early, the owner replied: "Because my girlfriend is too excited for Christmas & cannot help herself."

The current bestselling dog toys on Amazon include fetch balls, plush toys, chew bones, and treat dispensers among others. But not all toys are appropriate for all dogs.

According to the Humane Society, you should choose toys that are the appropriate size for your dog, making sure that they are not small enough to be swallowed or become lodged in your dog's throat. You should also supervise your dog when they're playing with squeaky toys, as they may feel the need to destroy the source of the squeaking, which means your pet could ingest it.

When choosing toys for your dog, you should also avoid or alter any toys that aren't "dog-proof" by removing ribbons, strings, eyes, or other parts that could be chewed off and ingested.

It is also advised to discard toys when they start to break into pieces or are torn, and check labels on stuffed toys to see that they are labeled as safe for children under three years of age and that they don't contain any dangerous fillings.

The main problem with toys' stuffing is that they may include nutshells and polystyrene beads, and even the "safe" fillings aren't truly digestible.

The clip quickly went viral, attracting animal lovers from across the platform, and has so far received more than 461,000 views and 69,500 likes.

TikToker Michelle commented: "Give him the toy and buy him another one for Christmas," while Ashley Nicole wrote: "my parents had to stop putting presents under the tree early [because] their dog would guard the tree all day lol."

Another TikToker CaseyLaurenn posted: "He's not staring, he's plotting."

Kkalittaa commented: "That's such a tease putting the toy in there," while Nicki Conrad175 added: "my [money's] on him already having the toy out."

Another TikToker arlazarow wrote: "Get him a dog advent calendar so he can really countdown to Christmas," while Kobeandkylee posted: "Omg waiting so patiently. So cute."

Erika added: "Awwwwww maybe [an] early Xmas gift...Santa won't mind."

Newsweek reached out to Goth_pack for comment. We could not verify the details of the case.