At the end of the week, there's nothing that heals more than a good dog Instagram account. There've been plenty of famous dogs on the internet that people can't seem to get enough of.
You probably follow Boo the Pomeranian (and if not, you should). Boo and his friend Buddy fit hit the internet in 2009. Boo was often dressed in clothes that made him even cuter. Sadly, Boo died in 2017 after living a long and happy doggone life. But his photos are still circulating.
While a new pup could never take his place, there's plenty of space on the internet for another king to take over. And Milo the toller is definitely in the running, Milo is only 2 years old but already has over 30,000 followers on Instagram. He even has his own YouTube show, called Drooling for Treats.
But aside from being a chef, Milo is straight-up adorable. He's a Nova Scotia duck tolling retriever who might be known as the "toller with the butterfly crown" — primarily because that's the first photo that got a lot of attention on Instagram. Obviously, Milo is a model in the making. And to be there from the start of his career is pretty thrilling.
Milo's human, Jenn Bennet, talked to Good Morning America about her pup's step into stardom — and his overall personality. "Milo is very independent, fun and loving who's willing to do everything," she said. "When you feed him right away, he'll stop in the middle and give you a kiss and thank you."
She revealed that Milo loves helping out in the garden. That's truly an interesting side hobby, as his first love seems to be baking and cooking — at least according to his YouTube show. Of course, all of the food that Milo cooks on his show is safe for dogs to eat.
The recipes include peanut butter carrot cake, peanut butter donuts, and granola bars. The channel itself is still fairly new. It launched only four months ago, and Milo is still in the midst of creating a fan base. However, the videos are cute and perfect for both humans and dogs who love spending time in the kitchen.
Jenn, obviously, made the treats on her own. But she realized that every time she was in the kitchen, Milo happened to know that she was making something special just for him. "He would just sit there and wait for a little piece on a spoon. And so I thought it would be really fun to teach people how to make the treats via the show," she said.
She also talked about the butterflies, along with the notable picture. When they're not in the kitchen, Milo and his family raise monarch butterflies in their backyard. You might assume that a toller wouldn't know how to act around such small insects, but he's actually very gentle.
"He loves to just watch them fly around the garden and he loves smelling flowers, so he'll go up and smell flowers that have Monarchs on them and just goes crazy watching that," said Jenn. "But he doesn't chase or nick at them." Of course, he has no problem sharing his space on Instagram with the backyard butterflies.
There's something especially beautiful about seeing a dog act so gently around his crown of live butterflies. It's a reminder that beautiful things will happen when we all peacefully coexist with each other. Plus, it may also be a push for others to help support the monarch population.
Monarch butterflies are a species that need protection. They're not necessarily endangered, but severe weather conditions often threaten their lives. "Monarch butterfly population sizes are incredibly vulnerable to climate change effects, so they are in urgent need of protection," stated Tierra Curry, a senior scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity, in a press release.
"We need to take action now to avert climate catastrophe for butterflies and all wildlife, as well as ourselves," Tierra continued. Helping conserve their population is definitely a reason why Jenn and Milo have decided to house so many of them in their backyard.
"We raise monarch butterflies to help grow their population," she told Bored Panda. "There are a lot of predators that can kill the caterpillars, so we try to help them through their stages and release them when they are butterflies. Milo loves it! We have so many butterflies in the garden."
Jenn also said that Milo isn't her first dog. But he's actually a relative of a dog she used to have who died. "I had a dog before Milo named Boden who passed away and Milo is his nephew," she said. "Milo was 10 weeks old when he joined our family. He is very self-confident, loves nature, hiking, and cooking." And, of course, butterflies.
Aside from the butterflies and the baking, there's even more that makes Milo such a special dog. "My favorite thing about Milo is how loving and caring he is," Jenn told Bored Panda. "He always makes sure everyone is doing well. Even when you feed him a meal, he will come over to you in the middle and give you a kiss as a thank you."
And that was actually a behavior he's had since he was just a small puppy. From the very beginning, he was always grateful for what he was given. And when it came to the butterflies, Milo didn't need any instruction. He naturally knew to be gentle. "He was a born butterfly king," she said.
It's safe to say that Milo is really going places and has a very bright future ahead of him. You can follow Milo's adventures online. If you like baking treats for your pup, his YouTube show will serve as both an educational and very cute watch.
