Woman was shattered after her puppy got lost—11 years later, her daughter called her with baffling news
Losing a pet in any way or form can be heartbreaking for a person. If they go missing, their human might worry about their well-being and safety. A woman experienced something similarly heartbreaking when she lost her puppy 11 years ago. She made a lot of effort to find him, but had to give up eventually and was crushed. Little did she know that she would get some surprising news 11 years later, on a call from her daughter, as per WKBW.com.
The woman, Melanie Epperson, was in the middle of moving to a new house and had left the puppy in her grandson's care. However, among everything going on with the move, the puppy managed to run away without anyone noticing. The family made efforts to look for him, but they simply couldn't find him. "I was worried, especially in the winter, because he doesn't like the cold," Epperson pointed out. However, after some time the woman had completely given up hope and didn't think that she would ever get to see her beloved dog again. But more than a decade later, her daughter called her to share that Snuggles had been found. Epperson was in complete disbelief over the news and thought that her daughter was joking with her at first.
"When I got that call, at first, I thought my daughter was joking. I thought she was playing around," the mom remarked. But the news turned out to be true. The daughter had received a call from the City of Buffalo Animal Shelter, where the dog had been brought in by someone. He still had a microchip and the shelter was able to use that to contact the daughter and find the owner. They had called Epperson first, but as she had changed her number and couldn't be reached, they called her daughter, who was her emergency contact. Even the daughter, Chantel Stroud, felt that it was a joke because it had been such a long time since they lost Snuggles.
"I thought it was a prank at first. When they asked if I knew Snuggles, I said, 'Yeah, that was a long time ago.' They then asked if I knew Melanie and I said, 'That's my mom,'" Stroud recounted. Gina Lottuch, Chief Communications Officer for the SPCA Serving Erie County, shared that such a thing might sound impossible, but incidents like these have happened before. "There are people who find pets and make honest attempts to find their owners," Lottuch expressed. Such people might not be able to connect with the owners for one reason or another, but they might keep the pet safe for years on end.
The officer took that moment to highlight the importance of keeping a microchip updated with the latest information. "Make sure all of the information with the chip company is updated with current phone numbers and addresses. If the chip can be read, the pet can be reunited with its owner. It's always best to pair a microchip with a traditional collar." On the other hand, Epperson is overjoyed to have her furry friend back and looks forward to spending the next few years with him. "I just never thought I would ever see him again. I Googled it and he can live up to 18 years old. So, I have another 4 to 5 good years to snuggle Snuggles."