Woman asks husband to unload the groceries—then he opened the trunk

A woman asking her husband to help unload groceries turned into an unexpected—and now viral—surprise, racking up over 28.4 million views on Instagram.

In the clip, Wyatt heads to the car after his wife, Elizabeth, both 30, asked for help bringing in shopping. Instead of grocery bags, he opens the boot to find a German shepherd and husky mix puppy sitting inside and no groceries at all.

Elizabeth had adopted the puppy just hours earlier and used a fake Costco run as cover—later inspiring the account name @ralphfromcostco. Wyatt’s reaction is immediate: he gently lifts the puppy, kisses his head and admires his piercing blue eyes as the pup eagerly tries to lick him back.

Elizabeth told Newsweek the moment came during an especially painful time for their family. Just two days earlier, their German shepherd Roo had died from cancer at age 7.

“I know people say you’re supposed to take time to mourn, but after two days, I couldn’t handle what the loss had done to our house,” said Elizabeth, who lives in Charleston, South Carolina. “We were heartbroken to the point of feeling sick, and our other dog Harry was still waiting at the window for Roo to come home.”

While grieving, Elizabeth found a litter of 7‑week‑old puppies online that urgently needed homes. The pups belonged to a young couple struggling to care for them.

“They were living in a trailer with no air conditioning or heat and could barely afford to feed the puppies,” Elizabeth said. “They also couldn’t afford to spay or neuter the parent dogs and they needed the puppies gone as soon as possible.”

With Wyatt home doing yard work, Elizabeth set her plan in motion.

“I said I was going to Costco for a break,” she said. “That way, when I got home, I could put the puppy in the trunk and ask him to help unload the groceries for the ultimate surprise.”

The video struck a chord with viewers, with many praising Wyatt’s calm, affectionate response.

“What a lovely man. To kindly and lovingly just accept the newbie,” one commenter wrote.

Another joked: “My Costco is definitely out of adorable puppies.”

More than a year later, Ralph is thriving. Elizabeth only started the Instagram account in December, when she first shared the video—but it quickly took off.

While Elizabeth’s experience had a happy ending, experts warn that finding puppies online can be risky.

French bulldogs, dachshunds and German shepherds—among the most-popular dog breeds in North America—are also the breeds most commonly linked to online pet scams, according to a 2025 study by the Better Business Bureau.

The BBB says pet scams are one of the most-common forms of online shopping fraud, often involving repeated payment requests that cost victims hundreds or even thousands of dollars. More than half originate on search engines or social media, where fake sellers—many using paid search ads—push fraudulent listings to the top of results.

For Elizabeth, though, what began as a simple request to unload groceries became a moment of comfort and a new beginning for her family.