Dachshund Attempting to Cross Road with Gigantic Stick Is a Man on a Mission

There's something about dogs and sticks that creates an unbreakable bond. My dog will absolutely stop in her tracks during any walk if she sees a stick she wants to pick up, and she will then carry it until she finds a better stick, and then switch out. When my daughter was in her stick loving toddler phase, this is something they definitely had in common — finding and carrying cool sticks around the backyard was their thing.

But there are some pretty big sticks out there that are actually better described as branches, and that means they're too big for little dogs to pick up... or are they? Not with the right amount of determination, they aren't.

In this TikTok video recently shared by @choco.basil , this adorable Dachshund dog named Basil is not only trying to cross the street before the crosswalk light changes, but he's also trying to do it while carrying a stick that is many times bigger than he is. In fact, it looks like it's pretty heavy, too.

But that isn't stopping Basil! Where there's a will, there's a way, and this angel managed to make it all the way across without stopping. This is so impressive!

Like I said, sticks are many dogs' thing, but for Basil, it's for real . In fact, they call him Branch Manager Basil because he's simply so good at carrying sticks around!

And most of the ones that he picks up are like the one in this video. They should be too big for him , but he handles them like a champ anyway. Go Basil!

Why Do Dogs Love Sticks?

As it turns out, there are a few real reasons that dogs are so drawn to sticks, beyond them being fun to play with and fetch.

As Project Hive Pet Company points out, it all goes back to dogs' foraging instincts : sniffing around and searching for exactly the right stick scratches that itch when they're living comfortably in your home, not struggling to find food or to survive.

Sticks also easily fit on your dog's mouth and are easy to chew on, which is one of a dog's favorite things to do. It keeps them calm and stops them from being bored at the same time, so really, it's one of the best kind of toys (and the fact that it's shaped like a bone really helps, too).

You do want to avoid letting them chew for too long, though, and they shouldn't swallow parts of the stick since that can pose an issue in their digestive systems.

Basil seems to be doing a great job hauling those sticks around. If he lived in the woods, he'd be the best forager by far!