The welcoming of a new dog to any family is an exciting time, but for one Guelph, Ontario man the addition of a puppy was beyond emotional.
James Xuereb was brought to tears when his daughter Jaleen and wife Wanda surprised him with a new Bichon puppy for his birthday earlier this month.
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Video taken by Jaleen showed her father struggling to read a card that delivered the good news, before breaking down.
“Hi, my name is Lumo, I’m a Bichon…,” James read before being overcome by emotion.
The outpouring was brought on by the grief of the family losing two of their beloved dogs, Lucy and Nemo, in the summer.
James was devastated after congestive heart failure and old age took the dogs just three weeks apart.
He had been mourning the dogs deaths for weeks and his family wanted to raise his spirits.
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The heartfelt gift was too much for James, who repeatedly said “Hi baby boy” as he cradled the Bichon puppy named Lumo – a combination of Lucy an Nemo.
The video posted on Jaleen’s Facebook was shared by a dog lovers group, causing the touching introduction to go viral. The video has been viewed nearly 10 million times already.