After Jonah’s longing gaze at a ballpark frank went viral, the Miami Marlins tracked him down and invited him back for a game full of treats.
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Baseball fans across South Florida searched for the dog with the tan coat and sad, dark eyes.
In a viral video taken at a Miami Marlins game, a couple had delighted in feeding a hot dog to a little white dog sitting in their lap. Meanwhile, in the background, another dog stared at the scene with glassy eyes full of longing. The team wanted to invite that dog back to its stadium — and give him his own hot dog.
“FIND THIS DOG,” the Marlins wrote on a makeshift wanted poster they shared on social media last month. “THE MARLINS WOULD LIKE TO TREAT HIM TO A DREAM DAY.”
A few hours later, Peter Silveira was working in his home office in Sunrise, Florida, when he heard his wife, Aimeé, scream in the living room. He thought something was wrong.
But the scream was in excitement. She saw her family’s dog — the one everyone was searching for — in the viral video. Silveira laughed at his Arubian Cunucu’s unexpected fame.
“Found him!” Silveira replied to the Marlins on X, along with a photo of his dog. “Name: Jonah. Hobbies: Catching fly balls, chasing squirrels, eating ice cream. Would love to come back for a dream day.”
Six years earlier, Jonah was a stray in line for euthanasia in Aruba before an animal rescue volunteer saved him, according to the New Life for Paws Foundation, which brought Jonah and his three brothers to the United States in January 2020.
Silveira saw a photo of Jonah on Facebook the next month and adopted him. The moment they met, Jonah jumped into Silveira’s arms.
The face Jonah made in the viral video was familiar to Silveira. Jonah, 6, often stares at Silveira’s 3-year-old daughter, Ariana, while she eats. He uses the same expression on Silveira when he wants attention.
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“His time in the spotlight, I feel like, has just been a matter of time,” said Silveira, 41. “I mean, everyone’s always said that he’s the best dog.”
Jonah attended his first Marlins game on June 22 during one of a few games each season when fans are allowed to bring their dogs. Silveira said he didn’t know Jonah was looking for a hot dog until he saw the video the day after the game.
The Marlins later sent Jonah a package that included a plush hot dog toy, and they invited Jonah and Silveira to a suite for their game against the Cleveland Guardians on Sunday.
“We’d love for you to come throw out the first pitch on July 12th,” the Marlins wrote to Jonah. “We hear you’re a southpaw. And don’t worry — we’ll have plenty of treats ready for you.”
Leading up to Sunday’s game, Silveira raffled tickets to his suite at LoanDepot Park to raise about $6,000 for the New Life for Paws Foundation. Plus, the Marlins said a portion of ticket sale proceeds went to the Miami Animal Rescue.
On Sunday, Jonah arrived at the suite to find dozens of hot dog toys and a doghouse that stadium employees built for him and filled with treats. Silveira threw out the first pitch while Jonah, wearing a black Marlins jersey, watched from beside the pitcher’s mound.
Early in the game, Jonah received what he had been longing for: a beef hot dog. But the snacks didn’t end there; Jonah devoured dozens of miniature hot dog treats during the game.
When they returned home, Silveira’s family ate an Italian dinner of rigatoni and meatballs. While Jonah normally would have stared at them with his now-famous pleading eyes, he was so tired and stuffed that he fell asleep on his gray bed.
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