In September, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson had to make the heartbreaking decision to put his beloved puppy Brutus down.
Photo by Jason Merritt/Getty Images.
"As all puppies and dogs do, he ate a mushroom while playing outside with his brother Hobbs," Johnson wrote on Instagram. "This mushroom happened to have a lethal toxicity and within hours it was rapidly destroying his liver and immune system to the point of no return. I encourage all of you out there to be mindful of mushrooms in your yards, parks, or anywhere outside your dogs play."
As tragic as Brutus' death was for Johnson, the actor continues to fight for dogs in need.
Dogs like this:
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, 3-months, is still doing good and getting a lot of love here at Saving SPOT! Anyone who hasn't heard, Dwayne was dropped off at the North Central Shelter with a metal wire wrapped around the bottom portion of his mouth. The shelter removed it gave him 17 stitches. He was also diagnose with a Grade 5 heart murmur. Saving SPOT! took Dwayne in and took him to a heart specialist. After the exam, the specialist said it can be fixed and scheduled the surgery for December 18th. We're raising money for Dwayne and his surgery. You can donate at: https://www.gofundme.com/helpdwaynethepuppy PLEASE SHARE Dwayne's story. @therock #spotrescuedogs
A photo posted by Saving SPOT! (@spotrescuedogs) on
Just this week, Saving SPOT! — a dog rescue shelter in Los Angeles — took in this 4-month-old puppy who was abandoned. According to the shelter, the dog was found abused, with "a large metal wire wrapped around his mouth," and a severe heart murmur, which would require expensive surgery to treat.
Because of the pup's resilience, the shelter decided to name him Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
Actor Michelle Trachtenberg informed the original Rock on Twitter.
To which Johnson replied:
That's when, according to a Pix11 report, Johnson proceeded to give $1,500 of his own money to the campaign to pay for (puppy) The Rock's treatment. (The fundraiser ultimately met its goal, and then some.)
The shelter even put the two Rocks together in this fantastic side-by-side shot.
DWYANE UPDATE - Knowing that "the Rock" has got Dwayne the puppy's back, we are confident he will be a fighter and make it through this. Thank you all for your generous donations- thanks to you we have met our goal. Any funds that are raised and not used for Dwayne will go to the more than 60 dogs Saving SPOT! Rescue has now including 5 week old puppies, a dog with mange and breast cancer and numerous orthopedic surgeries. Please help us to continue saving lives. We are thankful for all of you this Thanksgiving! Please donate... https://www.gofundme.com/HelpDwayneThePuppy
A photo posted by Saving SPOT! (@spotrescuedogs) on
What happened with The Rocks is a reminder that there are still far too many animals in America's shelters.
According to the American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, approximately 7.6 million pets enter shelters in the U.S. every year. And roughly 2.7 million of those animals — nearly 1 out of every 3 — are ultimately put down.
(Puppy) The Rock was lucky to make his way to a no-kill shelter, which raised the resources for his care, but many animals aren't.
Most no-kill shelters, almost by definition, don't accept every animal for lack of available space. The rest wind up in shelters that euthanize otherwise healthy animals because of overcrowding issues.
The solution is simple: Adopt.
(Puppy) The Rock is one of millions of great animals — puppies, kittens, adult and senior animals — currently living in shelters throughout the U.S.
I got this adorable guy from an ASPCA shelter two years ago:
Photo by Madalena Provo, used with permission.
And there's many more where that came from.
Not only does adopting mean one less homeless animal, it cuts down on the demand for puppy mill dogs, which results in fewer animals turning up in shelters in the first place.
In the meantime, both (puppy) The Rock and The (original) Rock seem to be doing great.
And why not? It's pretty hard not to love this guy.
Dwayne, 3-months, is doing good and has made a lot of new friends. We're half way to our goal for his heart surgery. Please share his story and help us reach our goal! https://www.gofundme.com/helpdwaynethepuppy @therock #spotrescuedogs
A photo posted by Saving SPOT! (@spotrescuedogs) on
With any luck, he'll make a great family very happy one day.
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."