Hearts are breaking for a dog having difficulty adjusting to shelter life after her owner kicked her out of the house.

Pixie's life turned upside down when she was surrendered to Halifax County Animal Control in Virginia. The owner claimed she was a stray, but a November 11 video posted by Marissa Emerman, known on TikTok as @our_zoo_for_you, shared that the owner instead "kicked [Pixie] out the front door." From a private home to the confines of an animal shelter, Pixie immediately became scared and the shelter labeled her a "fearfully aggressive" dog.

One of the most common types of aggression in dogs is fear-based, according to an article from Dogster. Fear aggression emerges when a dog's fight-or-flight instinct activates. Dogs will usually first show flight reactions, trying to escape a moment of fear, but if they cannot, the fight response kicks in. This may include defensive movements or acting submissively—tucking their tail between their legs, lowering their eyes or crouching to appear smaller.

In Pixie's case, she was visibly trembling and shaking inside her kennel. Although she received the label of fearfully aggressive, shelter staffers know that she just needs time to adjust after the hard transition. Plus, her heart is broken after being forced to leave her family.

The video shows Pixie getting comfortable with human touch again. Emerman went into her kennel, sat with her and gave her all the pets she could want. Pixie slowly accepted the love and even looked at her with hopeful eyes as she asked for more gentle touches.

Thankfully, Pixie has received a break from shelter life. Emerman told Newsweek via TikTok that she is in foster care now, but she is still waiting for her forever family to adopt her.

"The shelter environment was too much for her," Emerman said. "She was here about 2 weeks I think before a foster took her."

There have been several comments of people wanting Pixie, but "nobody seems serious," Emerman said. She added that Pixie, who is available through Halifax County Animal Control, will not be adopted until she is fixed, which will fall on the future adopter's plate.

Pixie's story immediately grabbed people's attention, bringing in over 238,300 views, 18,300 likes and 303 comments on TikTok as of Thursday.

"Some people don't deserve dogs. I hope this baby finds her forever home soon!" wrote one viewer.

Another added: "Praying she finds her forever home and gets all of the love she deserves."

A third commented: "Oh my god she was shivering. Please give her a hug for me."