Dog News

TV Show Helps Reunite Owner and Dog Separated by Two Years and 700 Miles

by Melanie

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3.20.13 TV Show
Alma and Leia embrace for the first time in two years.

 

When Alma Dominguez’s precious dog Leia when missing from her El Paso, Texas home during a rainstorm, she and her husband were heartbroken.  They spent two years searching for her, but it seemed they were never destined to be together again.  The Dominguezes had all but given up hope when a phone call changed everything.

Annmarie Anderson is a dog rescuer in Denver, Colorado.  She received a call from Alma who told her, “You might have my dog.”

Annmarie asked where she was from, and was shocked to hear Alma tell her El Paso.  Could the little dog have really traveled so far?  It seemed difficult to fathom that after two years, and over 600 miles away, Annmarie could have Leia.

The women connected on Facebook and shared pictures of the dog.  Though she was older and a bit fluffier, Leia looked the same.  They spoke on the phone, and Annmarie put Alma on speakerphone so Leia could hear her.

“[Her] little tail was wagging and she was doing the little cry in her throat,” Annmarie said.  “We realized right away that we had the right owner and dog.”

The women were featured on OWN’s series “Lost & Found,” and Alma was finally reunited with her beloved dog.

“I wasn’t expecting it,” Alma said behind tear-soaked cheeks.  “I’d found my Leia.”

It’s unknown how Leia taveled all the way to Colorado.  But all that mattered was bringing her family back together.  Leia was groomed especially for their long-awaited meeting.  A torrent of feelings washed over all involved as they excitedly and anxiously came closer to the reunion.

“When I saw Alma and Leia embracing, I was overwhelmed with emotion,” Annmarie mused.  “I found that you never give up hope.  Just when Alma decided that either Leia had gotten killed or another family had her, Leia was found.”