Grandpa Charlie

Tri-City Tales Issue No. 39

Grandpa Charlie, who was 78 pounds and somehow still scrawny, had been at the shelter for weeks. He had been picked up as a stray, and despite their best efforts, the staff at Tri-City Animal Shelter had not been able to get much weight on his bones. He was big. He was sad. Even worse, he was old.

           In August of 2025, the staff took Grandpa Charlie to Mega Adoption in Fort Worth, an annual event sponsored by the Humane Society. No one seemed interested in him, so someone took out a piece of cardboard and wrote, in all caps, “BEST OLD MAN DOG HERE” and held the sign aloft. She began shouting, like a carnival barker, at passersby.

“Sir, do you need an old dog? I will hook you up right here!”

“He is old and sad and needs to go home with someone!”

“He will love you for the rest of life!”

           Grandpa Charlie wagged his tail for everyone he met, but there were no takers. Devastated, the shelter staff drove him back to Tri City. But the video of the sales attempt went viral on TikTok, collecting more than 10,000 shares and 500-plus comments. One of them was from Bella Jimenez from Mansfield.  “He just looked so skinny, yet like the sweetest dog,” she remembers. “I knew I had to have him. I called my boyfriend right after and begged him to get him.” They drove to the shelter that weekend, and adopted Grandpa Charlie on the spot.

           Once home, Bella went on a mission to put some weight on her new companion. She got special kibble from the vet, and supplemented with turkey and veggies she cooked herself. She introduced Grandpa Charlie to drive thrus:  Pup Cups at Starbucks. Hamburger patties at In N Out. Grilled nuggets at Chick Fil A. Gradually, he bumped up to a happy 103 pounds.

           “He’s now my shadow wherever I go,” she says. But as an older fellow, he’s also content to spend long periods of time at home alone, napping—a perfect fit for a college student who also works full time. “He’s very kind to children and everyone he meets,” she says. “I could not have asked for a more perfect dog.”

And he will indeed love her for the rest of his life.