Family Decorates Dog's Special Spot To Entertain All The Neighbors

"People walk up and take selfies with the fence and Burger."

A few months after he was adopted last year, Burger started digging under his family’s fence. He wanted to be able to watch all the people going by, and after thinking about it for a while, his dad came up with the best idea. 

He decided to cut a hole in the fence to make a little window for Burger so he could watch the world go by, and Burger instantly fell in love with it. 

dog fence window
Brian Stanley

“As soon as I was done, Burger had his head through it and immediately stopped digging,” Brian Stanley, Burger’s dad, told The Dodo. “Best decision ever!” 

Now, every time he goes outside, Burger goes straight to his little window. He loves greeting people as they pass by, and he definitely brings a smile to all his neighbors whenever they see his little head peeking out through the window. 

dog fence window
Brian Stanley

When the coronavirus pandemic forced things to shut down in March, Stanley and his family noticed that there were suddenly a lot more people out and about walking past their fence than there had been before. The family hoped that seeing Burger would help bring a smile to everyone’s faces during such a hard time — and then Stanley had an idea to take it to the next level. 

dog fence window
Brian Stanley

“At first it started as a joke with my wife that I was going to paint something on the street side of the fence around the dog window, but then the idea of painting an actual picture and hanging it up to frame the hole started to form in my mind,” Stanley said. “The shutdown brought an obvious black cloud along with it. Even though more people were out on the street walking or biking, we knew it was due to job loss and uncertain times. I first talked about it to my son who was 100% behind the idea of putting something up on the fence to hopefully bring a smile to people's faces.” 

dog fence window
Brian Stanley

With the idea cemented in their minds, Stanley and his 7-year-old son Cameron got to work on their first painting. They decided to create a version of the famous painting "The Scream" and call it “The Bark.” They hung up the painting and admired their work. They hadn’t been planning on making any more paintings, but after the first one, the ideas just kept coming — and now the artwork framing Burger’s window is constantly changing. 

So far they’ve done “Paws” … 

dog fence window
Brian Stanley

… "Jurassic Bark" … 

dog fence window
Brian Stanley

… and even a Pac-Man-themed painting. 

dog fence window
Brian Stanley

Every time his family puts up a new creation, Burger is always right there, and quickly sticks his head out his window to admire their work. 

Of course, the initial goal of the paintings was to help brighten people’s days, and so far that’s absolutely been achieved. 

dog fence window
Brian Stanley

“People have told us that they plan their walks and bike rides to go by our fence and some people will even alter their drives so it takes them past it,” Stanley said. “I have been outside on multiple days with the dogs and see people walk up and take selfies with the fence and Burger. People bring treats to him and he just soaks up the attention. Both my wife and I have been stopped by people when they see us outside so they can tell us how much they love what we are doing and that they hope we don't stop.” 

dog fence window
Brian Stanley

Stanley and his family currently have new painting ideas planned all the way through January 2024. They’re so happy that their paintings and Burger are able to bring a little joy to their community. Of course, Burger probably loves the paintings most of all, because they’ve brought so many new people to his fence who he can watch and say hello to.

“All in all, it's brought us closer to the community and the community closer to us while making everyone happy … it doesn't get much better than that,” Stanley said.

You can follow Burger on Instagram