NYC magician uses tricks (and treats) to help shelter dogs get adopted

Why this story matters: It is often said that bad news travels fast, but good news has a deeper impact. This story explores a quiet victory that demonstrates how much we can achieve when we focus on building up rather than tearing down.

Quick summary: This story highlights recent developments related to magician, showing how constructive action can lead to meaningful results.

John Stessel calls himself the “Shelter Dog Magician.”

His tricks go back to his eighth birthday, when he first got a magic kit and fell in love. In the two decades since, he has honed his craft and created a library full of tricks — that he uses for good.

One of those magic tricks? Making a dog treat vanish right before a pup’s eyes.

An entertaining trick for audiences and dogs alike, he began posting videos of dogs excitedly sniffing out the vanished snacks, aghast at the idea that it really could be gone.

Stessel reached out to St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare Center in New Jersey to collaborate on these videos — using adoptable dogs as his special assistants, and sharing the adorable clips in hopes of helping them find their forever homes.

“Dogs really have one centralized focus, and that’s usually their treats,” Stessel told ABC News.

“I thought, ‘What if I made a treat disappear into thin air and catch their reaction on camera?’ And that’s really when the dogs show their personalities off. Each dog reacts differently, and we gave them plenty of play time, lots of love, and the videos took on a life of their own.”

While social media comments poured in praising the pups, adoption applications poured in, too. The shelter continues to work with Stessel and sends him photos whenever the dogs he worked with get adopted.

He has also worked with Badass Animal Rescue, an New York-based rescue that has hosted Stessel at some of their adoption events.

Stessel posts videos of dogs in “adopt me” bandanas and vests, with disclaimers that, even though he tricks them, all dogs are handsomely lavished in treats after the magic happens.

“It really is the most impactful work I’ve ever done. Magic is that feeling when you truly are astonished by something, but it doesn’t have to be a trick,” Stessel told ABC.

“Even hearing that my videos got one dog adopted? That’s magic.”

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A version of this article was originally published in The 2023 Helpers Edition of the Goodnewspaper.

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Header image courtesy of John Stessel/Instagram

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