Over 1 million people have tuned in to watch a dog’s unusual talent, as one commenter joked he was “training for a job as a window cleaner.”
Bear the cockapoo lives with his owner, Ellice Taylor from Northern Ireland, and has become an overnight social-media sensation as he showed off his bizarre skill: climbing a ladder. In a video to Taylor’s TikTok account, @ellices_life on November 17, she introduced the wild footage with the simple caption: “Just my dog Bear climbing a ladder.”
It shows a ladder attached to the door to the attic, which has been unfolded and is reaching the floor on the landing. And five steps from the ground is Bear—who appears to be determined to reach the top of the ladder and into the attic, slowly making his way step by step, one paw at a time.
Poodles are known for being intelligent and athletic, easily trained and highly active, according to the American Kennel Club. Cocker spaniels are also known for their high intelligence, durability, and impish nature. As a cockapoo, Bear is a mix of both, and apparently felt he had it in him to start climbing the ladder.
TikTok users went wild for the video, watching it more than 1 million times at the time of writing, and awarding it over 93,000 likes.
One commenter joked the situation was like “when your hubby won’t get you the Christmas [decorations] down so you send your dog instead,” while another said Bear was “training for a job as a window cleaner.”
And one viewer left the tongue-in-cheek comment: “This is actually really dangerous, if your dog continues to climb the ladder it might start thinking it’s trained to be a window cleaner and start cleaning people’s windows.”
But another commenter, who shared their genuine fear that “this is so dangerous,” was quickly reassured by Taylor, who replied: “Don’t worry I was right behind him and lifted him down, we had to put the ladder safely away as he just wanted to keep climbing.” And a third joked: “They’re evolving.”
Newsweek has contacted @ellices_life via TikTok for comment on this story.
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to [email protected] with some details about your best friend, and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.