A Nebraska family has finally been reunited with their missing dog five years after he disappeared, after the pup turned up behind a truck stop more than 600 miles from home.
Inmaculada Jackman said her family was devastated when Chong escaped from their Lincoln home in 2021. Even as the years passed, they held on to the hope that they might one day see him again.
“I still looked for him,” Jackman told local WKRC. “We still went to our old neighborhood and drove around and looked to see if we could see anyone walking him or if he was running around somewhere.”
That hope was rewarded five years later, when a friend spotted a social media post saying Chong had been found behind an Indiana truck stop, roughly 642 miles away from Lincoln.
Jackman quickly contacted the Hendricks County Animal Shelter to bring her long-lost dog home, but there was an unexpected complication: during Chong’s years away, someone else had microchipped him.
Shelter staff had the difficult job of explaining that they had reached out to the person listed on the newer microchip and had to give them three days to respond. If no one came forward, Chong could be released back to his original family.
“They told me that they were all hoping and praying that the other people did not contact them,” Jackman recalled.
When the waiting period ended without a response, Jackman was able to re-adopt Chong. He returned home to an emotional welcome from his owner and met Che Che, the dog the family had brought in after Chong went missing.
Heartwarming footage from the shelter shows the initial confusion Chong felt after being reunited with Jackman after five years, with the dog eventually cuddling with his owner and barking with joy.
Jackman said the family reunion should serve as a message of hope for all those who have lost their pets and are waiting for them to return.
“Never lose hope,” Jackman told WKRC. “It’s been five years and we found him.”
