People all over the world are trying to see whether their dog is capable of holding an egg in its mouth after this video of Sookie the golden retriever went viral.
Owners Carrie and Steven DuComb, from Michigan, heard the breed could hold an egg in their mouths without breaking it because they have such gentle jaws.
"I saw the challenge on Facebook and I thought, 'My dog would kill this,'" Carrie said. On Saturday night, they decided to try the theory on 8-year-old Sookie.
Steven filmed as Carrie, a licensed veterinary technician, gives Sookie the uncooked egg to hold in her mouth. The dog calmly obliges, delicately holding the egg between her teeth and then spitting it out (after a bit of coaxing) without leaving a single crack.
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Carrie's niece Haley Bowers posted the clip to Twitter, where it went viral, shooting to over 8.8 million views by Tuesday. It was also posted to Reddit where it took off. "[Haley] messaged me saying, 'I accidentally made your dog famous,'" Carrie laughed. The couples' ultimate dream is to see the talented dog featured on "The Ellen Show."
So the theory goes, golden retrievers were bred to retrieve game shot while hunting, hence they have "soft mouths" so they don't damage the trophies.
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Since the video went viral, the family had been inundated with people sending videos of their own dogs' attempts at the challenge -- not just golden retrievers -- with mixed results. "I see a lot of dogs with their owners saying, 'Fail!'...a lot of people saying, 'My dog isn’t as good as yours'," Carrie said.
Her message to other owners trying to do the egg challenge was that it depends on the dog. "My boss has a golden retriever and that dog wouldn't do it. It depends on their temperament; my dog is super patient. My neighbor tried it with their pit bull, and he opened his mouth and then spat it out."
Sookie was adopted by Steven in 2012. Since then she had learned to balance multiple things on her nose, from dog treats to an ice cream cone.
"As long as food is involved she will learn quick," Carrie explained.
The video also received some backlash from those who thought it might be unsafe to put an egg in a dog's mouth in case they crunch down on it. But Carrie, who has worked in a veterinary clinic for more than 20 years, says she wasn't worried about that at all.
Watch some of the other attempts below:
