‘Goodest boy award goes to’: Wholesome pup can’t watch the parade alone, so he brings his toys along for the show

We don’t deserve dogs. It’s a well-documented fact that these wholesome, deeply loyal, kindhearted beasties are far better than any human out there, and yet more evidence was shared on TikTok as the ultimate proof.

TikTok user Amanda D’Esposito shares plenty of content revolving around her faithful canine Bandit on her page, but easily among the best is a video posted near the start of June. In the video, a parade is ramping up on the street below the TikToker’s apartment window, and her charming pup is among its avid audience members.

He couldn’t enjoy the fun alone, however. That would be rude. So, in order to ensure everyone in the space earns equal enjoyment of the event, the happy hound collected a lineup of his toys and situated them directly in the window. This provided them front-row seats to the passing parade, right alongside the charming pooch.

The result is a deeply adorable video in which D’Esposito labels her dog “special” and expresses in the caption that he is “a breed of his own.” That’s certainly true, if my own dog is anything to go by. Her tendency to gleefully tear every bit of stuffing out of all but her most treasured toys would make her more likely to destroy her fellow audience members than watch alongside them, elevating sweet little Bandit to peak dog position.

Viewer reactions to the playful pup gushed over the wholesome video, where plenty of people were quick to correct D’Esposito. “Correction that’s a parade FOR him and he brought distinguished guests,” one commenter wrote. Others proposed that, rather than gathering fellow viewers, Bandit was simply making “his own good boy parade” in imitation of the one outside.

One sentiment is a permanent fixture across the comment section, and that is the pure, heartwarming sweetness present in the video. People can’t get past how sweet Bandit and his band of parade-going toys is, and shared numerous theories about why he felt the need to invite them to the big event.

The actual culprit could be a number of things, from the initial assumption of sheer joy to stress — perhaps the parade overstimulated Bandit and he needed the comfort of his toys — or even hunting instincts. Certain breeds of dogs feel most secure with a “kill” in their mouths, and toys make for a good substitute. That’s all according to a 2020 study digging into our canine companion’s tendency to show off their favorite toys, and the reasoning behind it.

Whatever Bandit’s reason for sharing the parade with his pals, the resulting video is serving as a deeply necessary dose of joy. With so much turmoil across the globe, a disheartening presidential debate weighing on our minds, and a harrowing future looming ahead, we all need a bit of Bandit’s pure-hearted positivity in our lives.