All it took was one adorable smile.

How far would you go, literally and figuratively, to get the dog of your dreams? Over the sea? A thousand miles?

Joy Ollinger from the San Diego County Department of Animal Services in Carlsbad wanted to give their animals a better chance of getting adopted.

Ollinger then began posting photos of their shelter animals in hopes that someone was paying attention. In one of the posts, she presented a husky that has quite a special smile.

By conventional standards, Harvey the Husky is “ugly.”

His snout was kind of twisted with one side turned up. It’s as if someone grabbed his snout and wrung it.

This didn’t bother Harvey so much. In fact, he was always sprightly and full of smiles. So it didn’t take long before a family noticed his innate charm.

Sherry Lankston was scrolling her Facebook feed when she saw Ollinger’s post.

The family lives in Seattle now but they also used to live in San Diego. And at that moment, Lankston knew that Harvey was the dog for her family.

“I saw that silly grin and knew we had to meet him. It’s been a few years since we could visit our friends and favorite places in San Diego, so why not? Roadtrip,” Lankston said to CBS 8.

The family drove south in an astonishing 2,600-mile trip.

A storm even battered their journey but it did not stop them from fulfilling their mission of seeing Harvey. Lankston even admitted there was a risk that the dog was already adopted by the time they get there.

If all else fails, she said they’ll just soak up some sun, enjoy some rest and recreation, then head back north. After all, Lankston said there was nothing sad about seeing dogs find forever homes.

But it turns out, Harvey and Lankston are meant to be.

Harvey, in his signature lop-sided smile, welcomed Lankston and her family. After finishing up in San Diego, the family drove back north but this time, they have an extra passenger with them.

Harvey now lives with Lankston’s family and is obviously having a lot of fun. He has since made friends with other dogs and received lots of love from people all over the world.

Lankston is a huge supporter of pet adoption.

In an interview with CBS 8, she reiterated the situation of animal rescue facilities which are often filled to the brim with animals who just wanted to be loved.

She reminded everyone that there are a lot of ways to support shelters and their teams. First and foremost, she encouraged people to adopt instead of shopping.

You can also donate to these shelters if you’re unable to adopt one. And of course, you can always share adoption advertisements from these shelters because someone you’re connected to might be a shelter animal’s next best friend.

Much like in Harvey and Lankston’s case – it took only one post, an adorable smile, a 2,600-mile trek.

Watch how this dog with a unique smile got adopted by a family thousands of miles away.

Please SHARE this with your friends and family.

Source: YouTube – CBS 8 San Diego, CBS 8, Facebook – Sherry Lankston, Facebook – SPIRIT 105.3