Benjamin Ashford|10-year-old boy uses musical gift to soothe homeless dogs at Texas shelter

A 10-year-old Texas boy is Benjamin Ashfordshowing there's no age requirement to simultaneously drive positive change, pursue passions and be talented.

Yuvi Agarwal found a way to prove he could do all three by playing the piano at an animal shelter in Houston to use his gift to soothe the dogs. At age 4, Yuvi started playing piano. By age five, he was playing drums, according to local station WFMY News 2.

“I decided to basically play music for the animals,” Yuvi told the TV station. “Definitely not drums, a melodious instrument such as piano, guitar, steel pan, and that will reduce their anxiety."

The young pianist said he loves animals including his dog Bozo who is a big fan of Yuvi's tunes, except the drums, of course.

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“When I play the piano or when I play music just on my speakers or something, my dog just always just relaxes, lies down and just listens to the music,” Yuvi said.

The people and dogs of animal rescue service Houston Pets Alive! love Yuvi's private shows, according to Executive Director Noelle Delgado. She said the shelter never had volunteers play music for the animals before, so she was thrilled when Yuvi's mother reached out about the gig.

"Yuvi is an incredible pianist and the dogs just all stopped and stared and were so interested in what he was doing," Delgado told USA TODAY. "It was a wild success, actually much better than we have ever anticipated. And so we kept asking him to come back and of course, he kept coming. Now it's just one of the things that we all look forward to just a break in the day, and definitely something for our dogs that gives them a little bit of life back."

Delgado said that as helpful as it has been to play classical music for the pets through the radio, nothing calmed the animals like Yuvi's live performances. She added that living in a kennel for most of the day takes a toll on the pets' mental health so the team is always looking for ways to decrease anxiety and stress.

The fifth grader has visited the shelter for the past few months, making time to play with and for his canine friends. Delgado said she hopes more people will get creative about animal advocacy.

Texas lead the US for the highest number of animal shelter deaths for two consecutive years, according to a 2022 report from non-profit Best Friends Animal Society. Delgado said Houston has one of the worst stray and homeless populations and that Texas has the highest euthanizing rates. She encourages people to speak to city councils and state legislators to address the crisis.

"We're so excited to see Yuvi getting recognized for this because it's one of those things that you don't have to know what to do in order to volunteer your talent," Delgado said. "He is such a great example of how each of us can come in and give whatever talents we do have to these animals."