Darius Brown, a teenager from Newark, New Jersey, sews bow ties for shelter dogs and cats to help them catch the eye of adopters. He started in 2017, after seeing animals displaced by Hurricanes Irma and Harvey, and by March 2021, aged 14, he estimated he had donated more than 600 ties to shelters across the United States. His project, Beaux and Paws, has since earned him a letter from Barack Obama and a commission for President Joe Biden's dog.
What makes the story more than a cute photo opportunity is how it began. Darius learned to sew as a way to build skills that did not come easily to him, and turned that work into a mission.
How sewing became therapy
Darius was diagnosed at about age two with delays in speech and fine motor skills; he has also described a cognitive delay. Fine motor skills are the small, precise movements of the hands and fingers that we use to write, button a shirt or hold scissors. Children with delays in this area often work with occupational therapists on activities that strengthen and coordinate those movements.
His mother, Joy Brown, a single parent who works in home nursing, thought cutting fabric might help. His older sister, Dazhai, was already making bow ties, and Darius began watching her. Joy told The Washington Post that he was so determined
and studied his sister for months. He began by cutting fabric and before long, she said, was running the sewing machine himself. He was eight. One of his first creations was a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles bow tie.
His sharp dress sense earned him the nickname "Sir Darius", which is also the name on his social media accounts.
Hurricane Irma and the first 25 bow ties
In September 2017, Hurricane Irma tore through the Caribbean and Florida as one of the strongest Atlantic storms on record, reaching Category 5. Around 6.5 million Floridians were ordered or urged to evacuate, the largest evacuation in US history. In the aftermath, dogs and cats from Florida and Puerto Rico were moved to shelters further north, including some near Darius's home.
Darius saw an animal-welfare commercial about pets left homeless by Irma and Harvey, and his sister later recalled that it made him cry. When he learned that some of those animals might be put down if no one adopted them, he decided to act. He sewed about 25 small bow ties and dropped them off at the ASPCA shelter in New York City.
The reaction encouraged him to keep going. He set himself a goal of delivering bow ties to an animal shelter in every US state. By March 2021 he had reached Washington, DC, and eight states.
A post shared by Sir Darius Brown (@sirdariusbrown)
Do bow ties really help animals get adopted?
Shelter workers told The Washington Post that the ties help animals get noticed, especially older dogs that adopters tend to pass over. ABC7 reported that one dog, Max, went home with a family while wearing a Darius bow tie.
There is no large study proving that a bow tie, by itself, speeds up adoption, so it is fairer to see the ties as one part of good shelter marketing. What is well established is that first impressions matter: clear, cheerful photos and small details that make an animal look cared for help people imagine it at home. Many shelters use bandanas, bows and friendly profile descriptions for exactly this reason, and a handmade tie from a young volunteer comes with a story that people like to share.
The scale of the challenge is large. According to the ASPCA, citing Shelter Animals Count, around 5.8 million dogs and cats entered US shelters and rescues in 2025, about 4.2 million were adopted, and roughly 597,000 were euthanised. Those numbers have improved in recent years, but older animals and those with health problems still wait longest, and they are the ones Darius has said he most wants to help.
From one teenager to a small business
Darius turns out about ten ties a week, each taking roughly 15 minutes to make. He donates most of them, but he also sells bow ties for pets through his online shop, Beaux and Paws, and gives part of the profits to the ASPCA.
A GoFundMe campaign started by his sister to pay for fabric and shipping drew wide support after national media covered his story, with reports in 2021 putting the total near $100,000. We could not open the campaign page to confirm the current figure. In her appeal, Dazhai asked people who could not donate to share the campaign instead and signed off with the family's trademark "Stay PAW-SOME!"
A post shared by Sir Darius Brown (@sirdariusbrown)
A letter from Obama and a tie for Major
Recognition followed. In 2019, former President Barack Obama wrote to Darius after hearing about his work, commending his commitment to community service and his founding of Beaux and Paws. Darius said the letter brought him to tears.
In early 2021 he made a bow tie for Major, President Joe Biden's rescue dog, to wear for the inauguration. He has also made ties for the pets of other well-known people. By March 2021 he told the PA news agency that he had made up to 1,000 bow ties in total. As for his own dog, he would love a dachshund or a Pomeranian, his mother said, but pets are not allowed in their apartment building, so he gets his fill of dogs at every shelter he visits.
How you can help shelter animals
You do not need a sewing machine to make a difference. A few ideas inspired by Darius's project:
- Adopt, and consider an older animal. Senior dogs and cats are often calm, house-trained and overlooked.
- Foster. Temporary homes free up shelter space and help animals show their personalities.
- Volunteer your skills. Photography, social media, sewing, dog walking and fundraising all help animals find homes.
- Ask before you donate items. Shelters have different needs, so check their wish list first.
- Share adoptable animals online. One post can reach the right family.
Darius summed up his motivation simply in an interview with PA: seeing animals at risk hurt his feelings, so he made it his mission to help as many dogs and cats as he could. For a boy who once found holding scissors hard, that mission now reaches shelters across the country.
Sources: Instagram posts by Sir Darius Brown (@sirdariusbrown). The Washington Post, 17 March 2021; Irish News/PA, 22 March 2021; ABC7 News, 19 July 2019; ASPCA: Pet statistics; Wikipedia, Hurricane Irma.
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