Dog becomes internet sensation for helping dad with newborn twins: 'She's my girls' guardian angel'

Editor's note: This article was originally published on December 30, 2022. It has since been updated.

New parents sometimes worry about how their pets would behave around their newborn babies. So they sometimes train the pets how to behave around the baby or sometimes keep them away for a while. However, Josh and Kelly Rheaume's dog Lucy didn't require any of this. They were apprehensive about how their dog of almost seven years will react to having two new babies in the house. “She was confused,” Josh told TODAY. “For about five, six days, she was very standoffish... She tried to go in the car seat...trying to take their place so she could get our attention again. It was quite sad actually.” 

But soon Lucy fell in love with the twins. Meanwhile, the couple realized that they need to start including her. Josh said, “With all the tricks that I had trained Lucy over the years, we figured that we could put them into action.” And the results are evident in the Tiktok video that the father uploaded. In the sweet video, Josh asks Lucy to get clothes for Lenon and she brings them without any hesitation. Then he asks her to bring a diaper and then the trolley, Lucy brings the diaper and then drags the trolley with her mouth. Later, he asks her to get a thermometer, and she goes to the next room to get it. In the end, he thanks her and says, "We wouldn't have done it without you, baby girl."

The video starts with the text, "In case you haven't met her yet, this is Lucy. Recently she became a big sister to twin girls Lily and Lennon. After 7 years together, we feared she would feel forgotten..or lost when the girls arrived." It continues, "So when the girls arrived, we made sure she was involved in every way possible. And this happened. She became my girls' guardian angel...as she's always been ours. And that's a torch I don't mind passing on." The video has more than 50,000 views and 7000 likes.

The couple adopted Lucy seven years ago when Josh was going through a hard time. He had lost his job and their dog had died six months ago. He said, "I said, 'You know what? I don't have a job right now. I need something to keep me company." He soon started teaching Lucy tricks and taught her to fetch things around the house. 

Josh said, “The thing about Lucy (is) she has very good item recognition and word association." “(It’s) something that’s kind of imprinted in her brain.” He added that she was relatively easy to train. Now, he always finds people recognizing Lucy and petting her when they are out. He said, "When we go out, I always have the window down and I always leave the truck running," he says with a laugh. "I'll come (back) over and she'll have five or six people around her giving her treats and giving her hugs."

His only advice to anyone wanting to train their dogs is patience and positive reinforcement. "A bond is really important, being close to your dog first and foremost. They want to do well for us,” he added. “Give them the patience they need and, you know, reinforce that positivity once they’re able to achieve what you want them to achieve.”