Man was devastated after poodle disappeared from backyard — 10 years later, a call from another state changed his life
The connection between a person and their pet is truly special. So when a man, Ed Lighthall, lost his poodle mix, Pete, he was devastated. At first, the man thought that his beloved dog had been stolen from his backyard. That was the last place he had seen Pete. However, Ed didn't get any answers for the next 10 years. Things changed with one phone call that reunited Ed with his favorite poodle, per NBC Chicago.
Ed thought that Pete had gotten out of the backyard before he was stolen. He often wondered about how his dog was doing and mentioned him in front of his friends. "I would tell people how much I missed him and how much it would mean if he ever came back," the man remarked. 10 years after the Chicago man saw his dog for the last time, Pete was spotted wandering around Hammond, Indiana, by animal control. They checked the dog's tag and called the number. The authorities connected with a person who was the dog's current owner. They expressed that they didn't want Pete back. Fortunately, the officials could find a microchip that connected them to Ed. The man was on cloud nine after he came to know about his lost dog.
"I'm still on a cloud – this is unbelievable. I would tell people how much I missed him and how much it would mean if he ever came back. There are no words. I am filled with gratitude right now," Ed shared. The man really loved Pete, so he simply couldn't believe the great news he got. Pete had been found 20 miles away from the spot Ed last saw him. "He's a lot older than when I last saw him. So, I am adjusting to that part, his energy levels and all those things. But he is happy and he is healthy," Ed explained. "He feels like I saw him yesterday." It was quite a surprising reunion because of how far the dog was found.
"The dog was running loose, right here on this very busy corner and was picked up and brought to our establishment. He was wearing a collar and tags," Laney Bunner of Hammond Animal Control, told the outlet. According to the American Animal Hospital Association, there are many benefits of microchipping a pet. The biggest one is the fact that a microchipped pet is less attractive to thieves, as they can be traced back to the owner. Microchipping can also make the search for a lost pet less stressful, as authorities could scan the pet for a microchip and trace them back to their owner.
"The tag owner didn't want the dog back, but in the meantime, I was in touch with 24/7 pet watch, which is the microchip company associated with the dog and got a hold of Ed. Wonderful man and he was ecstatic because his dog had been missing for 10 years," Bunner went on. The woman added that it was the longest time that she had ever heard of a dog missing and being reunited with their owner. "It is amazing." Ed continued, "I am happy, my whole family is happy. Everybody I know is really happy about this. I am just happy that he got back home. However much time we have left, I am happy to spend it with him."