It’s no secret that the news has been pretty miserable for quite a while now, but I am so pleased to report that we finally have an unbelievably wholesome story to distract us from the burning world — and it involves seven dog friends whose recent adventure is worthy of its own Disney movie.

(And if you saw this story and automatically assumed it was AI, then you’d be forgiven; I genuinely felt like a boomer falling for a Facebook video of a talking squirrel when I first started looking into it, but it has actually been verified by a whole bunch of people. Yay!)

So, basically, on March 15, a video emerged online showing seven dogs of different breeds walking along a highway together in Changchun, which is the capital of China’s northeast Jilin province. Sadly, we can’t share the video right now, but you can watch it for yourself here.

In the footage, a Corgi, later identified as Dapang (which translates to “Big Fatty,” if you’re wondering), was seen leading the pack, and repeatedly looking behind — seemingly making sure that none of his friends had been left behind.

Meanwhile, some of the bigger pups surrounded an injured German shepherd in an apparent bid to protect him.

Per the South China Morning Post, the person who captured the highway footage tried to guide the dogs to safety, but they ignored him. He then posted the video online to urge local authorities to step in. Notably, somebody else also filmed the dogs as they wandered through nearby fields together.

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The Bitter Coffee Stray Dog Base then reported that the dogs came from three separate households in the same village, and had a strong bond with one another because they often play outside together and know each other well.

According to SCMP, a volunteer for this base said that the dogs were stolen from the village by people operating a dog meat shop, with it being thought that the friends had managed to escape from a truck together, with the pack first spotted around 17km [about 10 and a half miles] away from their village.

For what it’s worth, while dog meat is banned in some municipalities of China, dog meat restaurants still operate in parts of the country. As raising dogs can be costly, it is not unusual for pet dogs to be stolen for the trade, with thefts reported across cities like Changchun, Harbin, and Dalian.

Related: I Highly Doubt That You Will Be Able To Pass This Animal Trivia Quiz, So Try And Prove Me Wrong

Against all odds, by March 19, all seven dogs had been reunited with their worried owners. The Corgi was the first to return home on March 18, with Dapang one of three pups who belonged to the same owner. After Dapang wandered back into her house, the owner searched nearby villages and found the other six dogs, who had been taken in by another villager.

Per the Guardian, Dapang’s owner told Chinese media that she was at the point of giving up hope after spending four days looking for her beloved pets.

It’s worth noting that since this story went viral online, state media in China has refuted the dog meat claim, and insisted that all seven dogs wandered off on their own accord.

Still, people are understandably obsessed with the whole thing, and have taken to social media to share their heartfelt reactions to the doggy pals’ movie-worthy experience. One viral tweet that has been liked more than 124K times reads: “Get Disney on the phone right now.”

Somebody else quote-tweeted the story and added: “literally just burst into tears,” while another wrote: “i’m so proud of them…. brave, strong, smart babies.” One more tweeted: “Please I need to watch a movie about them.”

As always, let me know your thoughts on Dapang & Friends’ real-life Homeward Bound moment in the comments below!

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