Ethan Dearman, a supermarket security guard in Giffnock, Scotland, has been showered in praise after a picture of him lending a pup his umbrella has gone viral.

Dearman was positioned outside the supermarket Morrisons when the sky opened, drenching everything and everyone outside.

Dearman luckily had an umbrella to protect himself from the downpour, but when he noticed a pup getting hit by the rain, he decided that the pup needed it more than he did.

Dearman shielded the thankful pup with his umbrella and kept him dry while they waited for the pup’s family to return from their shopping.

The kind act was noticed by another shopper, Twitter user MelGracie_, who took a picture of the sweet scene and praised Dearman on Twitter.

In the tweet, she revealed that Dearman had explained his sweet gesture with the matter-of-fact words “‘well you never know how dogs feel about the rain’. ”

The tweet soon went viral, and before he knew it, Dearman’s refreshing selflessness and concern for others had made him quite the hero online.

Dearman was very touched by the response he received. He retweeted the tweet that made him go viral and added this sweet caption: “Looks like I made a lot of people happy today.”

Later, he was pleased to announce that the pup in question was named Freddie and that he and his family had made a return visit to the store and stopped by to say hi.

Dearman’s sweet gesture, and the appreciation he’s received both from the pup’s family and the general public, shows just how important and appreciated simple acts of kindness can be.

Dearman’s matter-of-fact display of concern and compassion, and the attention it has received, is sure to have inspired other people to follow in his footsteps, and he can be very proud of having contributed to making the world a little brighter and kinder.

On Twitter, happy and appreciative comments have been pouring in and spreading the love.