Two Years After Going Missing, Dog Is Reunited with Family When Owner Sees Him Up for Adoption on TV

By Amanda Thomason August 2, 2021 at 1:37pm

Many news stations will feature local adoptable pets as a way to get the attention of more potential adopters.

Some pets sit in a shelter for so long, and get passed over so many times, that introducing them on television can help make the perfect match.

For one little brown dog featured by WITI-TV in Milwaukee last week, the perfect match had already been made years ago, and when he popped up in the adopt-a-pet segment, his former owner was watching and immediately recognized him.

The Wisconsin Humane Society shared the dog’s story last week after the happy reunion.

“Last week, we were shocked and thrilled when FOX6 News Milwaukee reached out to us after one of our regular Adopt-A-Pet segments,” the post began.

“They told us that one of their viewers, Dwight, called in because he recognized the dog we had featured.”

The Humane Society went on to explain that Dwight shouldn’t have even seen the segment, as he normally wouldn’t have been watching television at that hour.

“He had woken up early last Wednesday to the sounds of FOX6’s morning broadcast, just as our volunteer started describing a little brown dog with the most adorable underbite,” the post continued.

“Dwight normally turns off his TV every night, but must have left it on by accident — or perhaps thanks to fate. It only took one glance at the picture for Dwight to immediately recognize Payday, his long-lost pup who had gone missing nearly two years ago!”

Though details on how the pup was lost were not shared, the family did say that the dog originally had been for Dwight’s daughter, who is now 12 “and still distraught over the incredible loss of her best friend.”

Melissa, Dwight’s mother, went to the shelter to pick up Payday, and it was pretty clear he remembered who she was.

“[A]s you can see — it was the most incredible reunion!” the post concluded. “We are beyond ecstatic for this amazing family to finally be whole again.”

Payday can be seen doing happy dance wiggles and making up for lost kisses when Melissa picks him up.

Shelters often encounter a lot of sad stories with all the neglected and abused animals they help, the strays they pick up and the dogs that have to wait a long time to find their forever homes — but an ending like this is one of the best possible and brings joy to all involved.

“Returning lost animals to their families is a core part of our daily animal sheltering work,” the Humane Society told Newsweek, “and it’s a privilege to witness the profound joy of a redemption — especially one that waited two years!”

Submit a Correction →