A heartwarming video of seven dogs has won the internet! The dogs, who were being illegally transported to ilegal dog meat traders in China, are seen escaping their fate and trying to find their way back home. Sharing the video on X, historian William Dalrymple captioned it – ‘Real life 101 Dalmatians,’ referring to Disney’s 1996 adventure film. As per a report by South China Morning Post report, the dogs were on a 17km journey, trekking back to their village, battling through traffic and tough terrain.
As per a South China Morning Post report, the video geo tags to China, where seven dogs escape from illegal dog meat traders. Following a 17km journey, they trek back to their village, battling through traffic and tough terrain.
All about the viral 7-dogs video
On March 16, a netizen, Lu, recorded the video of the dogs as he spotted seven dogs walking along a busy highway in Changchun, Jilin province. In the video re-shared by Dalrymple, seven dogs of different breeds, including a German Shepherd, a Golden Retriever, Corgis, Labradors, and a Pekingese, can be seen concerned, worried, and in an alert stance.
Lu even told local media outlet, Dahe Daily, “They resemble a band of little brothers in distress, moving in unison – nothing like stray dogs.”
Lu had himself tried to guide the dogs to safety, but they ignored his calls. He then shared the video on Douyin, a Chinese social media platform, urging the authorities to take action. Another user-shared video also showed the group of dogs walking together through nearby fields.
While China’s Shenzhen was one of the first mainland cities to ban dog meat, it still remains a prevalent practice in China. And these illegal operators rely heavily on stolen pets and stray dogs, as dog farms require huge capital and investment.
‘Straight from a movie plot’
As the video went viral and the group of dogs gained widespread attention from social media, some videos even gained over 200 million views. Users on X noted that their tragic, yet heroic, story seemed straight out of a movie. “It may sound straight from a movie plot, but in reality, it’s really sad. How can anyone steal a pet for the meat trade? A pet is like family. These seven were lucky to escape, lakhs aren’t, and end up on dining tables,” shared @hiteshinigam on X.
Seven dogs stolen from their owners have gone viral after escaping from an illegal transport truck and making their way home.
They traveled around 17 km together, led by a corgi across highways and fields, now safely back with their respective owners..🐶🐾🥺❤️ pic.twitter.com/H5VB9BQkGB
— 𝕐o̴g̴ (@Yoda4ever) March 23, 2026
“It’s really not lovely that thieves steal everyone’s pets & sell them to be slaughtered. It’s horrifying,” shared another user.
“Animals are so much more human than people,” shared a netizen on X, while others were reminded of Punch, the viral monkey from Japan’s zoo, winning the hearts of the Internet. Punch, who found solace in an orange plushie of an orangutan, was abandoned by its mother and faced rejection from several adult monkeys in the zoo.
A user on X even created a sample movie poster for this ‘tale’. Naming it ‘Seven Miles Home’, it showed the seven dogs standing near a road, similar to the highway in the viral video.