There’s nothing cuter than a little boy with his best buddy, especially if that best buddy is a dog. But one little boy has earned an amazing award for his love of animals.

Roman McConn is just seven-years-old and since dedicating himself to rescuing dogs at the age of four, he has rescued an amazing 1,300 dogs. It all started when he asked for donations to his favorite animal rescue for his fourth birthday in lieu of gifts.

Now the youngster from Augusta, Georgia, is being recognized by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) for making a big contribution to the world of rescue animals. Jennifer, Roman’s mom, has been a big help in making Roman more hands on with the rescues. They even transported 31 dogs from a kill shelter in Texas to Washington where they also helped the dogs find homes.

Roman says that a big part of helping the animals is giving them a chance to show off their personalities. Jennifer records videos of Roman playing with the animals and then posts them to Facebook. This gives people the chance to see the dogs, but also see how they interact with a younger child. Roman’s efforts started out as a small act of kindness, but has since evolved.

They now have an organization called Project Freedom Ride that rescues animals from kill shelters in Texas and helps them find forever homes. Roman hopes that his story inspires other kids to start helping animals in their own area.

Check out the video below to learn more about Roman’s inspiring story and be sure to share it with you family and friends.