'Walking past my dog' challenge: Owners test pups' recognition skills, with mixed results
Dog owners are putting their pooches up to the test and the reactions have been priceless.
A new social media trend, "Walking past my dog," has been steadily gaining popularity as dog owners test their pets' memory and recognition abilities. An owner walks by their dog − which is being walked by someone else − to see if they recognize their mom or dad.
Here's what to know about the trend, including some of the hilarious reactions.
What is the 'Walking Past my Dog' challenge?
The "Walking Past my Dog" challenge is a new social media trend in which dog owners walk by their pups on walks without them to see if they will recognize them.
Pet owners have been recording their dogs' reactions as they casually walk by.
Watch Maya, Teddie, more react to the 'Walking past my dog' challenge
TikTok trend has dogs confused then excited when they see their owners on walks!
Dog owners are walking by their pups on walks without them to see if they will recognize them, and the reactions are hilarious!
While some owners have been lucky with their dogs recognizing them straight away, others not so much. Nonetheless all reactions are enough to warm your heart and put a smile on your face.
New York-based Sarah Kim told USA TODAY her dog Teddie knew it was her right away.
"I wanted to see if Teddie would recognize me from walking down the street and it was so sweet to see he noticed me right away after not seeing each other for a week," Kim said.
She added that her soon-to-be 4-year-old Chihuahua's reaction made her feel "so happy and loved ... It was so cute to see Teddie being so excited to see me."
Maya the San Francisco pug's reaction
On the other hand, Maya a 4-year-old Pug in San Francisco, took a minute to recognize her owner.
Maya's owner Pauline Carbonell told USA TODAY she didn't know it was a trend when she filmed her dog's reaction. She said she just wanted to see her dog's reaction as she came to pick her from the train station.
"This was one of those days that the train was early, so I wanted to see her reaction if she saw me before getting to the train station," Carbonell said. "Turns out she couldn't see me."
Dog ignores mom on Southern California hiking trail
Meanwhile Lexi Bennett told Storyful that she tried the challenge on her pooch during a hike in Orange County, California.
In the video shared by Bennett, her dog can be initially seen strolling right past her before abruptly stopping and running up to Bennett with her tail wagging frantically.
Bennett joked that her dog was 'way too focused on her hike with dad."
"I wasn't even a thought apparently," Bennett said in the video's caption. 'I then said, 'Really?' And that got her attention."
Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.
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