He went to the ruins of Machu Picchu, went to the Great Wall of China, sailed along the Amazon River, flew hang gliding in Rio de Janeiro and splashed around in the waters of the Fontana di Trevi, in Rome. During eight months, in 2009, the mutt Oscar and his owner, Joanne Lefson, traveled through 42 countries and visited more than 60 organizations that protect animals. The journey, recorded on social media, was intended to draw attention to stray dogs around the world – a number that is close to 500 million. Oscar, by the way, was one of them. He was living in a shelter in Cape Town, South Africa, when Joanne adopted him.

By becoming the most traveled dog on the planet, Oscar has also earned a reputation as an international ambassador for homeless dogs. In 2013, he died after being hit by a car, but his story became a book: Ahound the World: My Travels with Oscar, unpublished in Brazil. A former golfer and nature lover, Joanne leads animal advocacy projects. In one, she took Rupee, a Labrador who scavenged dumps in Ladakh, India, to venture to Everest Base Camp – located at 5,000 meters above sea level. The press reported the fact as if they had climbed the nearly 9,000 meters of the highest mountain in the world – something unlikely for a dog. But that doesn’t detract from the value of their accomplishment.