Happy tails: Missing dog turns up 9 months later, 3 770km from home

A dog that went missing in California was found more than 2,300 miles away in suburban Detroit, prompting a dramatic reunion with its owners.

Police picked up the terrier-mix called Mishka – who vanished last July – and took her to an animal shelter after a resident reported a stray dog near Harper Woods, in the midwestern state of Michigan.

Staff at the Grosse Pointe Animal Adoption Society (GPAAS) found she had a microchip, which identified her owners as living 2 343 miles (3 770km) away in San Diego – though it was unclear how she had travelled so far.

Owner Mehrad Houman and his family happened to be on vacation in the midwestern city of Minneapolis around the time Mishka was found, GPAAS said.

Though the drive from Minneapolis to collect her from the shelter was shorter than a trip from California, it still took 10 hours.

MISSING DOG WAS REUNITED WITH HER OWNERS

“This is a tale that Hollywood would love to tell,” GPAAS said in a Facebook post on Wednesday.

Pictures and videos shared by the group showed Mishka, a scraggly, small, white-haired dog, wagging her tail as she was reunited with her owners.

“This is the happy ending we all wanted,” GPAAS wrote.

It added that Mishka was due to fly back to California with her family after being checked by a veterinarian.

SAPeople urges all pet owners to have their furry friends micro-chipped.

By Garrin Lambley © Agence France-Presse