All pets have amazing personalities of their own. One particular Shiba Inu, owned by 16-year-old John Mantaldo and his 19-year-old sister Angelina, is just crazy for her Santa Claus doll.

John's family gave Kya the dog the toy Santa last year, and it quickly became her favourite. They even have an extra one kept in store so she will never be without her favourite toy.

"She really loves her Santa, and she has to have it year-round," Angelina told Buzzfeed. "Whenever we come home, she brings it to us."

So when they saw an ad for "pet photos with Santa" at the mall, they knew it would be the perfect Christmas treat for Kya. "A lot of people were taking pictures with their dogs," Angelina said. "But we were like, 'Nah, it's just going to be the dog.'"

John even said that Kya, who is "usually super crazy and hyper," transformed when she met her hero and got really calm. "She just sat there and looked at him," Angelina said. "She usually misbehaves when we take her to Petsmart, but she was behaving for Santa."

"When she first saw him she was really excited, and when we put her next to him she was calm and looking at him like she was amazed," John also told The Huffington Post.

John and Angelina had to pay $30 for the picture, but they said it was totally worth it to see Kya so happy. "She was definitely the most excited dog there," Angelina said.

They even got to take home wallet-sized photos of Kya's encounter with Santa. John thought it looked absolutely precious so he posted it on Twitter. Little did he know that Kya would become a viral sensation. "I only figured my friends would laugh at it and maybe get like 20 likes or so," he said.