Chris Evans Celebrates National Rescue Dog Day with Video of 'Best Friend' Dodger on the Day They Met

Chris Evans is celebrating National Rescue Dog Day!

The Captain America star, 39, shared a sweet video on Instagram Thursday of his beloved dog Dodger on the day they met at the shelter.

In the footage, Dodger gets visibly excited as Evans walks over to the kennel and puts his hand out for the pup to sniff.

Almost immediately, the dog begins licking the actor's fingers and sticking his nose through the fence to get closer to him.

"Happy #nationalrescuedogday," Evans captioned the post. "This is the moment I met Dodger. I was filming a movie in Savannah and the scene took place at a shelter. I had no intention of rescuing a dog that day, but the minute I saw him I knew he was coming home w me."

He continued, "There are so many loving animals at shelters who are in desperate need of a home. Visit a shelter and leave with a best friend."

Earlier this week, Evans shared adorable photos of Dodger tucked under some pillows staring at the camera with wide eyes.

"Beginning, middle, and end of dragging out the question, 'Do you....wanna go.....to the DOG PARK??' " the dog dad wrote on Instagram.

Evans adopted Dodger during the production of his 2017 movie Gifted when he visited a dog kennel to shoot a scene.

"I foolishly walked in and I thought, 'Are these actor dogs or are these real up for adoption dogs?' And sure enough they were, so I was walking up and down the aisles and saw this one dude and he didn't belong there," he told PEOPLE in 2017. "I snagged him and he's such a good dog. They aged him at about one, he acts like a puppy, he's got the energy of a puppy, he's just such a sweetheart, he's such a good boy. He loves dogs, he loves kids, he's full of love."

Since Evans adopted Dodger, the mixed-breed boxer has been a staple on the actor's social media accounts.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Shortly after joining Instagram, Evans admitted that he had only created an account on the platform so he could share photos of his furry friend.

"I guess I caved," he joked during an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in May. "I feel like such an old man. I'm so late to the party. You know what it is? I had too many good pictures of my dog. I was like, they're being wasted in my phone. I need to put these somewhere."