Snoop, the Dog Abandoned on CCTV in Stoke-on-Trent, and His New Home

Snoop's Abandonment Video and the Rescue Account

Snoop is a Staffordshire bull terrier who was filmed being abandoned beside a road in Stoke-on-Trent, England, a week before Christmas 2018. Security camera footage showed a man taking him out of a silver hatchback, leaving him on the pavement with his dog bed, and getting back into the car while the dog tried to jump in after him. A passer-by found the dog, took him to a vet, and the RSPCA launched an appeal to identify the people involved. The happier part of the story came three months later: in March 2019 Snoop was adopted by a man named Laurence Squire.

The clip was shared around the world, and it still circulates every December. Here is what the footage shows, what the investigation established, how Snoop found a home, and what anyone in a similar situation can do instead of leaving an animal behind.

What the CCTV footage shows

The camera's own timestamp puts the event on Monday 17 December 2018, a little after 5:10 in the evening, after dark. The stills released by the RSPCA show the sequence clearly.

A man walks the dog on a lead beside a parked hatchback at 17:11 on 17 December 2018. At this point nothing looks unusual; the dog is calm and close to him.

Seconds later the man carries a pet bed along the pavement, with the dog following at his heels. Snoop was later found sitting in this bed, which had been left with him.

Back at the car, the dog jumps up at the vehicle as the man gets in. This is the moment that made the video so painful to watch: he appears to be trying to climb back inside.

At 17:13 the car pulls away and the dog runs into the road after it. A second person was in the driver's seat, according to the RSPCA.

Snoop after his rescue, on a lead and looking healthy. Vets estimated he was about two years old and described him as a white Staffie with black markings, in good condition and very friendly.

The full recording released with the appeal:

It is tempting to say Snoop thought it was a game. Nobody can know what a dog understands in a moment like that, and the footage is upsetting enough without guessing. What it does show is a young dog who was used to being with people and wanted to stay with them.

The RSPCA investigation

The case was handled by RSPCA animal welfare officer Natalie Perehovsky, who appealed to the public for help identifying the car, the man and the dog. She called the footage "just awful" and said one man could be seen clearly while a second person sat in the driver's seat.

The vets scanned Snoop's microchip, which led to two earlier registered keepers in the Birmingham area. The RSPCA said it did not believe either of them was the current owner, so neither was considered responsible for dumping him. That detail matters: a microchip record shows who registered a dog at some point, not who had him last, and it is a reason keepers are legally required to update the details when a dog changes hands. Microchipping has been compulsory for dogs in England since April 2016.

While the inquiry went on, Snoop was looked after at a private boarding kennel. We have not found a published report of anyone being charged over his abandonment, and the ITV follow-up in March 2019 does not mention a prosecution.

How Snoop found a new home

Thousands of people offered to adopt him, according to ITV News Central, among them the American rapper Snoop Dogg, after whom the vets had playfully named him. The dog was moved to the RSPCA's Gonsal Farm Animal Centre in Shropshire to be assessed and rehomed.

Laurence Squire had already contacted the RSPCA looking for a young male Staffie when he saw the news story. He told ITV that the way the dog tried to get back into the car suggested real loyalty, and that Snoop "seemed like the perfect dog for me". Staff noted one lasting effect of what happened: Snoop showed separation anxiety and needed a home where someone was around all day. Squire could offer that, and the charity later described the pair as having a strong bond.

Rehoming centres match dogs with homes for exactly this reason. A dog that has been abandoned may struggle when left alone, and the right adopter is often less about enthusiasm than about routine, time and patience.

If you can no longer keep a dog

People give up pets for many reasons: a move, a new baby, illness, money worries or a dog whose needs turn out to be more than they can manage. Needing to rehome an animal is not shameful. Leaving one in the street is dangerous for the animal and for drivers, and in England and Wales owners have a legal duty of care under the Animal Welfare Act 2006, which replaced the older Abandonment of Animals Act 1960.

Contact a rehoming charity early. In the UK, organisations such as the RSPCA, Dogs Trust and Blue Cross run rehoming services, and many local rescues will advise even if they have no space.
Tell the truth about the dog. Honest information on health, habits and behaviour helps a charity find a home that will last.
Update the microchip details when a dog passes to a new keeper, so the record stays useful.
Ask about support before giving up. Some charities offer behaviour advice or help with costs that can make keeping a pet possible.

And if you are thinking of giving a puppy or dog as a Christmas present, the long-standing advice from rescue groups is to make it a decision for the whole household, not a surprise.

How people reacted online

When the video spread, readers responded with anger at the people in the car, but many also shared photos of their own rescued dogs. A selection of those comments and pictures follows.

One of the most common reactions: amazement that the dog kept wagging his tail through it all, and a sense that dogs give people more loyalty than some of them deserve.

A reader describes seeing a dog thrown from a car, spending three hours catching him, and then keeping him. Five years on, the commenter says they are both very happy.

Not every reaction was gentle. This comment wishes harm on the person in the video, which shows how strongly the clip affected people, though responsibility for animal cruelty is a matter for investigators and the courts.

A commenter tells the story of a dog who had been starved, shot and left in a road, unable to use his back legs when a shelter found him. Today, the owner writes, he is a much-loved "mama's boy".

Photos shared with that comment: the dog thin and recovering at the shelter on the left, and healthy and filled out in the snow on the right.

A short line many adopters will relate to: meeting a best friend because someone else did not want him.

A man hugs his rescued German shepherd-type dog on a porch, one of many happy photos readers posted in reply to Snoop's story.

A reader explains that a dumped dog turned up at their house the previous summer and stayed. She is described as funny, smart and never far from her new owner's side.

The dog from the comment above, a black-and-white rescue sitting on her owner's lap in front of Christmas lights.

Another reader found a dog that had been dumped near their home and kept her, summing it up as the previous owner's loss and their gain.

The dog from that comment wears sunglasses to match her owner's, proof that rescued dogs can end up as full members of the family.

A commenter shares how a puppy was found tied to a tree at eight months old, with a note saying she could not be cared for. A neighbour found her, and she has now lived with the commenter for twelve years.