upworthy

adorable

Adelaide Dog Farm Days

Back when I lived and worked in the city, I used to take our dog to doggie daycare. It was a cute little building not far from my office, and I would drop her off in the morning and pick her up on my way home. Periodically throughout the day, I'd get pictures of her playing with the other pups on the enclosed outdoor turf area, or I could check the live camera feed. When I finally got her into the car, she would be happily exhausted. It was a little pricey but she loved it! And it sure beat leaving her home alone all day.

That's the doggie daycare that I know — simple, but a good way to keep your dog stimulated and exercised while you're away. But now I wish that I lived in Adelaide, Australia because there's a new doggie daycare picking up buzz and it might be the greatest thing I've ever seen in my life.

Adelaide Dog Farm Days starts in the most unique and adorable way possible. They come pick your dog up from your house – on a school bus!

The pups pile inside together like a bunch of kids heading to elementary school. It gets a little raucous in there as the excitement for the day builds.

(Spoiler alert: Check out the before and after video. These dogs are wiped out at the end!)

@adelaidedogfarmdays

Friday was hectic! Let’s do it all again next week #dogdaycare #dogbus

Once they get to the farm, they've got a jam-packed day of adventure ahead of them.

We all know the joke that when your dog dies as a kid, your parents tell you that he went to go live on a farm so he could run free and play with other dogs. Well these dogs actually get to do it.

Bus pick up runs from 7-9am, and then the pups get about six hours of free play on a 20-acre farm. They can run through the dirt and grass just about as far as they could ever imagine (the edges are gated in for safety, but the space is massive). They can swim in the lake and roll in the mud. They can follow scents and dig in the dirt uninhibited — no turf playgrounds here! And of course, when they need a break, the staff is on hand to give belly rubs and scratches to anyone who needs one.

Your pup is bound to get messy while he's living his best life, that's why you can opt to have them bathed at the end of the day so they're returned to you fresh and clean.

Seriously, just look at how happy these dogs are. It's no wonder people call this place "Heaven for dogs."

The founder, Owen, recalls sitting at home in his small townhouse with his pet border collie and thinking "You're a farm dog. You deserve a farm."

"All dogs deserve a chance to run around and be a farm dog," he says. That thesis inspired him to open his unique business.

There's nothing wrong with more traditional doggie daycares. They give dogs a chance to play and exercise with other dogs in a safe and contained area instead of being cooped up all day. Play is incredibly important for dogs — did you know that while many mammals love to play, dogs and humans are some of the only ones who never lose that love of games? Even as dogs get older and slow down, they never lose their interest in fun and adventure. In fact, regular play is hugely important for dogs' brains, and can help slow cognitive decline as they age. And of course, the exercise is always important, and even necessary — ask anyone who has an energetic puppy how important it is to let them run every single day.

Few dogs get to ever experience the level of fun and adventure found on an open farm where they can run and swim to their hearts' content. Adelaide Dog Farm Days is getting tons of love on social media, but it's not the only daycare of its kind. You can find similar getaways for your pup in many U.S. states — though they won't always have the adorable morning school bus pick up.

I may not live anywhere close to Adelaide, but watching these videos is inspiring me to get my lazy house dogs some more adventure in their lives. Maybe we'll start with a hike and work our way up to an exhausting, six-hour day on a farm. They definitely deserve it.

4-year-old New Zealand boy and police share toys.

Sometimes the adorableness of small children is almost too much to take.

According to the New Zealand Police, a 4-year-old called the country's emergency number to report that he had some toys for them—and that's only the first cute thing to happen in this story.

After calling 111 (the New Zealand equivalent to 911), the preschooler told the "police lady" who answered the call that he had some toys for her. "Come over and see them!" he said to her.

The dispatcher asked where he was, and then the boy's father picked up. He explained that the kids' mother was sick and the boy had made the call while he was attending to the other child. After confirming that there was no emergency—all in a remarkably calm exchange—the call was ended. The whole conversation was so sweet and innocent.

But then it went to another level of wholesome. The dispatcher put out a call to the police units asking if anyone was available to go look at the 4-year-old's toys. And an officer responded in the affirmative as if this were a totally normal occurrence.


Is this what life is like in New Zealand? Practically no COVID-19 to speak of and police units casually dropping by kids' houses to check out their toys?

Listen to the call shared by New Zealand Police:

Child calls 111 to show Police their toys | New Zealand Policewww.youtube.com

The New Zealand Police wrote on YouTube, "Constable Kurt from Southern District Police responded by arriving at the child's house and was shown an array of toys. He also had a good educational chat with the child and his parents about only using 111 for emergencies." The officer also showed the boy his patrol car, put the lights on for him and remarked, "He did have cool toys!"

Lovely exchanges all around, from the kind emergency dispatcher, to the clearly exhausted dad, to the officer going out of his way to look at a random kid's toys, to the precious little kiwi who kicked off the whole chain of events with his thoughtful offer.

Add this to the ever-growing list of reasons to love New Zealand.

Heeyyyyy, everyone! It's time to share our weekly collection of Hopeful Happy Things, which has frankly become a bit therapeutic for me to pull together. It's far too easy to let the Terrible Trending Things suck up all of our attention, so purposefully focusing on joy and delight feels quite healing.

Check out these 10 things and see if you agree.


Bear cubs find a hammock and create delightful chaos.

How frigging cute are these cubs? Every kid who tries to get into a hammock for the first time understands. Hang in there, cubbies. Hammocks are hard, even for humans.

This beatbox champion's stylings—the beatboxing AND the hair—are too epic.

First of all, holy talent, Batman. I don't even understand what he's doing, much less how, but I'm floored. Go, Show-go, go.

Second, let's talk about the bowl cut/mullet mashup, because that's just all kinds of WOW.

Pandas entertain themselves like toddlers and it's the best thing ever.

More videos of pandas doing somersaults, please.

The way this kiddo talks to his younger sibling is literally the cutest thing ever.

The voice. The sweetness. The emotional intelligence. The consent lesson. This is more than my ovaries can handle. Good job, Mama.

These super big brothers make Halloween epic with their baby sister every year.

That is one lucky baby girl.

There's nothing better than a best friend reunion, but this one will hit you right in the feelies.

Love a kid who lets his emotions out. Read the full story here.

Profoundly autistic boy said he wanted friends for his birthday. More than 55,000 people responded.

Daniel is profoundly autistic and his parents said that he had never expressed a desire for friends before. They weren't even sure if he fully grasped the idea of friendship. His dad shared his birthday wish on Twitter, and birthday greetings poured in from unexpected places. Read this beautiful story here.

We all need this reminder of how powerful and life-changing teachers can be. 

"My teacher said I'm an artist!" and that's all it took for this kid to proudly display his artwork. Teachers are superheroes with incredible powers.

Surprise veteran homecomings never get old. This one is just pure joy. 

If that doesn't make you smile (and then maybe cry a little), then I don't even know. Splash some cold water on your face or something and make sure your heart is pumping.

Seriously cannot get enough of Abby, the donut thief superhero.

This isn't new, but I'd never seen a compilation of this cutie's verbal gems before. Too hilarious. I did a little digging and found out the family has a TikTok channel (@alongcameabby), so excuse me while I go bingewatch a precocious preschooler for hours.


Hope that lifted your spirit! Keep an eye out next Friday for another round-up of happiness. :)