A couple had only recently adopted a dog that was feral and not fully integrated into domestic bliss. It was spooked by fireworks and jumped the fence and took off.
The dog was found 7 months later.
Take a look at the reunion video and let us know what you think. It’s caused quite a few different opinions in the comments. (It’s important to watch all of the video before offering an interpretation of the dog’s behavior.)
That brought tears…of happiness.
Made me tear up. That is how a shy dog greets the person she misses. She looks like a very sweet dog. I am happy she finally made it home.
The people making negative comments are ignorant. Take it from the lady who lives with six friggin’ dogs.
I have had many dogs. Most were very afraid of kennels, the vets or other institutions. That was evident in the video, even though the dog recognized his owner.
It’s good to chip your dog. If the worst happens and dog goes missing, without a microchip you may never be reunited with your buddy.
Very touching. She wasn’t sure what was going to happen. She may have remembered the scare she had from the fireworks identified with seeing her human. As she spent time reuniting, she remembered the love.
*sniff*
Poor pup. It just looks as if she has led a very confusing life and seems happy to be reunited with the one recent stable aspect of her life.
I recently dog/house sat for a family in San Francisco for 16 days. That pup bonded to me and when they returned I expected a joyous reunion but she acted as if she didn’t recognize them at first and the greeting was tepid on her side. As I backed out of the garage, she tried to follow me. Now, when I first met with the family, the dog was very friendly to me and curled up with half of her on my son’s lap but was obviously a happy girl with the family. A friend of mine whose dogs I also stayed with for over a week said the dogs acted the same way as that other dog when they returned. She attributed it to a pack instinct where if a dog loses its pack, it needs to form a new attachment with another pack for survival. It seems plausible, but I’m not an expert with dog behavior. It happens with every lengthy stay with people’s dogs, though.
That video made my eyes leak. I’m taking Tybo to the vet in Reno tomorrow (four-hour drive!) for the first time since he adopted us. I never thought of asking that he get a microchip. Now, it’s the first thing I’ll do. It’s only been three months, but I don’t know what I’d do without him.
Conservative Cowgirl, I think you are just one of those rare people who has a special gift that dogs can clearly recognize. My dad had that gift, with all kinds of animals, and dogs just went nuts over him. Those dogs know you have something amazing in your soul and they want to be near you. I’m good with animals, but only a few people, like you and my dad, are blessed with that extra special something.
I hate these video’s, because I can’t look away. Dogs are truly the best friends of man.
My move to Wyoming, though it was a good move, forced to leave behind a black & tan chihuahua who is a best friend to my 79 year old father. It’s HIS dog, but he’s missed greatly by me.
Always greeted me when I came home from work, and loved to lay on my chest while I watched TV.
……and more faithful and consistent than any girlfriend I ever had.
http://rlv.zcache.com/black_tan_chihuahua_card-r1b97e7493d6c4261a39097554e1b779e_xvuat_8byvr_512.jpg
Dear Brown Eyed Girl, I’m happy you will look into the chip for your dog! Some places offer it at very low prices. My momma dog, Bellah, is a Siberian Husky – SHes are known escape artists and runaways. The people we adopted her from had her chipped and we had the chip registered to us. It has gotten Bellah safely returned to me three times already. (Thankfully she has mellowed out & we have gotten better at Husky proofing over the years).
Without looking at any of the other comments yet, I’d say Dora had a look of stunned disbelief at seeing her beloved master – who she never thought she’d see again. She walked up to him with total submission, as though to say “Please take me back in the pack, boss. I MISSED YOU.” So happy they were reunited!!!
I don’t see anything negative about the dog’s behavior. She was obviously happy to see him, just maybe a little shy. Rule of thumb though: don’t leave your dog outside while fireworks are blasting.
I am so proud of the readers here.
I looked at that video and when the dog came in the room she became frozen with emotion, not all of it positive, not necessarily negative, just complicated.
The dog kept advancing, despite being in a state of trauma, because the dog thought that she was in trouble.
The head down, the lip licking, ears back are not fear. It’s asking for forgiveness, and an explanation as to what is going to happen, and is unsure she will receive it. It’s a complicated form of remorse and trepidation, not fear because the people beat her, as the people say in the comment section.
The dog thaws over time when she realizes that everything will be okay.
I’m not sure why anyone would have a nasty comment about this. The dog clearly did not at first fully remember the owner and went into a submissive stance because while she knew there was something about him she just didn’t know what. You can see when the memory clears for her and she wants to get as close to him as possible. The best part was when she was hustling thm both to get them both out of the shelter and on their way home.
Dogs Rule.
So now how do we socialize feral yoots?
Not knowing the history of an adopted dog can be frustrating.
We adopted a mixed breed, he looks like a Rottey mated with a Chihuahua. Vet said maybe a Chiweinie?
Small bundle of muscle, totally fearless.
His canine teeth were ground down, that was the first indication, he was deathly afraid of any broom, stick, cane.
He was abused. Took me 6 months before he would let me pet him, took to the wife right off.
He was abused by a man. Asshole.
Now, I have to push him off my lap when I have to pee.
If you watch, at :50 the dog knows who is there. If the dog had been abused, she wouldn’t have kept going.
Dora the Explorer.
This is why I love dogs.
I like dogs more than I like people
Dora looks like our dog, Roanoke, just a little more stout. Strange, he died in 2005 and when I came home just a while ago he was on my mind STRONGLY like I expected him to be at the top of the stairs waiting for me. Then I sit down at the computer and I see this. Dora behaved exactly the way I would have expected her to behave. Roanoke was feral but we found him when he was 4 weeks old (he lived 15 years). When we moved to Hawaii, all pets had to be quarantined for 4 months (not anymore) and even though I was able to visit him every day, he would have that cowed reaction. Did you see how well Dora behaved on her leash? I am glad she is home.
Her reaction was about what I expected since Dora had not been in her new home very long. Hope she has a happy life and gets to stay inside next time fireworks are going off.
@Zilla, thank you. That‘s a very high compliment. My son definitely has The Gift with horses, too. They love him! 😁 He is quiet and gentle with them.
My daughter has the gift with bugs & frogs & snakes. LOL Even bees and wasps will perch calmly on her hand with no stinging. Pretty much any critter that most little girls would be afraid of will let my daughter pick it up and handle before getting set free someplace safe for it. She relocates all the spiders that show up indoors for me, and stinkbugs too. Rescues snakes from the cats. Shows me every frog, toad, butterfly, salamander and caterpillar she meets. And grasshoppers. They love her.
Good synopsis BFH. I’m happy her owners found her. Taking in animals that have been dumped is rewarding. We have a cat that was dumped on us. She’s strictly an outdoor cat, but, we are able to brush her and spoil her. We’re okay with that.
A coworker had a proclivity towards fire water. Once in awhile he would indulge and disappear for a couple days. Last time it happened his wife met him at the door with a shot gun and told him to get in the car. She was taking him to the vet to get micro chipped. He never did it again.
I had a rescued chipped dog escape once, was picked up by a neighbor and brought to a kennel. The chip had information on it that was incorrect, it didn’t apply to anyone or anything.
Have your vet double check your chips at a vet visit. We weren’t responsible for the initial programming, it was done by the rescuer’s vet.
Luckily we found her after 3 days missing, she was going to the kill shelter the next day, as a bully breed “stray” they don’t even try to adopt out, it’s instant euthanasia.
Wish we could get a follow-up story on this…
Got a little sumptin in my eyes too.
i. am. not. going. to. cry.
there. I’m done. My little buddy Toby is under my desk now. He’s a PITA somedays, a down under Terrier (australian terrier to us yanks) but i love him and he just adores me. Thinks i truly walk on water. I am leaving the beautiful Black Hills for warmer winter climate in AZ shortly and taking him with (but leaving working wife here). He was my sons dog and they will re-unite there. I hope he jumps for joy when he sees him but its been 18 months. He will stay with me as my son cant keep him at his residence but he will visit us often.
I will need to get him chipped.
Could be a little nervous about going back to the place with all the fireworks, too.
🙂
That dog was shy and traumatized by seven months of life without her parents.
The paw poke tells all. That dog wanted more petting.
At the end she was going home and was bouncy frisky.
Nuf said
Great for pets! Not for PEOPLE.
Got the missus chipped today. She shouldn’t be wandering off chasing rabbits and squirrels and deer anymore.
Ok. That was a lie.
Missus had me chipped.
@BFH
I’d have called it deference to the accepted pack leader; much as we bow our heads to our God.
That poor dog has had seven months of hell. She seemed not to be afraid of her owner, but just so relieved.