Family bonding time can look like different things to different people. Sometimes it comes in the form of a game night or a trip to the movies, but other times, a simple “dinner in” can be just as special. That’s why we’re going to show you one of our favorites examples of this. Let’s just say that this family’s mealtime ritual is unique. Once you meet their dog, you’ll know why!

The viral video begins ordinarily enough, with a household of four—a mom, a dad, a son, and a daughter, sitting at their table, about to enjoy some grub. Before just digging right in, this particular family chooses to say grace.

The mother in the clip commences the moment of simple worship by closing her eyes, putting her palms together, then saying “Let us pray…” It is then the camera starts to pan around the table, revealing the rest of the devoted family in the midst of their prayer.

But wait— when we say the rest of the family, we’re including everyone, even the family dog! The quick-thinking cameraman made the smart decision of skipping out on grace that night to catch one of the doggone cutest things we’ve ever seen! It looks like little Fido wants to be part of everything this family does, even their worship.

Now, I know what you might be thinking: Did the family train their dog to do this? Well, we can’t be so sure, but we’ve done a bit of research on the topic and, it seems to us, this dog might have just picked up this habit on his own!

The foremost of dog trainers—Cesar Millan—emphasizes the fact that dogs are pack animals and are always focused on what their “pack leader” is doing. Now, most domestic pups don’t have a canine leader to follow, so they’ll look to the next best thing for guidance—their owner.

According to the website Cesar’s Way, dogs “observe what humans and other dogs are doing, evaluate whether or not that behavior will be useful for obtaining whatever goal they are after, and then decide whether or not copy it based off of that.”

So, we don’t necessarily know what this little pooch’s objective was when he initially started copying this human behavior, but we do know that he deemed prayer as being beneficial to him in one way or another. Perhaps this family rewards him with food, or maybe he simply wants to blend in and be part of “the pack.” Either way, we think this dog’s got the right idea!

To see this adorable Jack Russell take part in an important family ritual, be sure to click on AFV’s video below! Next time you pray before dinner, blink open an eye and take a look at what your dog is doing. Who knows—he may have been joining in all this time without you knowing it!

What do you think of this canine’s mealtime routine? Have you ever caught your dog acting like a human? How so? Tell us all about your thoughts and experiences in the comments section below!