Volunteers Help Reunite Dog With Family After Going Missing For 2 Years, “Emotions Were Everywhere”

A family from Colorado finally reunites with their furry family member who went missing two years ago, thanks to the amazing work of volunteers.

The “Happy Tail” was shared by the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region (HSPPR) on August 27 on their Facebook page.

“We are grateful to serve such a compassionate and pet-loving community, and this Happy Tail is about how our community helped reunite a dog that had been missing for over two years,” the animal shelter wrote.

The animal shelter and WFIE reveals that Bear got lost two years ago on April 2022 while he was with a pet sitter.

Brandy Ross, Bear’s owner, was devasted when the pooch was lost. She tells WFIE, “Like, that was the hardest part. Was going home after I had left him with the sitter and then coming home to not having my dog.”

She and her family reported him missing and posted in Facebook groups. And they spent weeks searching and posting him. But to no avail, Bear never turned up.

The “saddest part”, as HSPPR put it, is that Ross’ family had to leave Colorado Springs without the pooch and move to New York due to work in the military.

But for HSPPR, things “got exciting” when they started working with a group of volunteer pet lovers dedicated to helping lost dogs reunite with their families.

HSPPR reveals, “In July, Animal Law Enforcement (ALE) was alerted to a possible Bear sighting. Where at? The same location he went missing two years prior. So, an ALE officer reached out to these volunteers for help.”

The animal shelter reveals that the volunteers jumped on board to save Bear “without hesitation”.

“Feeding stations were set up, game trail cameras were placed, and they began monitoring Bear. They even found the original lost pet post from the owners (yes, the one from 2022) and let them know what was happening,” HSPPR explains.

Danielle Neiner, the volunteer who found Bear, further explains to WFIE how they caught Bear, “We then set up a time to put up what’s called a messy trap. So it’s a giant trap where they walk in, they hit a light, basically towards the back that triggers the door to close.”

And finally, on August 18, the volunteers successfully captured Bear. The animal shelter reveals that through a microchip check, they were able to confirm that the stray pooch they caught was indeed Bear.

“His owners were crying tears of happiness,” HSPPR wrote.

Neiner reveals that when they found the pooch, “He was pretty matted, very dirty, all that different stuff. He’s definitely underweight. but health-wise, he’s had no health problems.”

Ross couldn’t believe the news of her pooch being found. She said, “The whole night I’m like, ‘Oh my gosh, is this my dog?’ And then she read the numbers and she’s like, ‘It’s him.’ And I was like, ‘No way.’ And I was literally bawling my eyes out … Even now I’m in shock that this is him,”

“And to now be like, ‘He’s OK.’ It’s weird. It was, it was crazy. Like our emotions were everywhere,” Ross added.

Before making the cross-country trip, Bear got a much-needed groom and went to the vet for shots and a health certificate, all taken care by the volunteers who rescued him.

And then on September 01, Bear finally took the trip to reunite with his family, a trip that was paid by generous community members.

And before the long-awaited reunion, Ross reveals, “So we already bought all of his bed and his bowls, and my kids helped me buy him toys.”

Bear’s story is another reminder that hope is never lost. And that microchipping your pets will highly increase your chances of being reunited with them if they ever get lost.