Senior dog went missing on own Missouri property. He was found — 200 miles away
It was normal when Lisa Wood's three dogs, Ruben, Manny and Captain, would spend the day exploring her family's property in West Plains, only when the dogs returned this May evening, the trio was down one.
The 13-year-old Captain.
'Lisa started searching for Captain and posting on local Facebook groups to find out if he'd been spotted,' a June 25 news release from Best Friends Animal Society detailed about the night Captain went missing.
'Due to Captain's arthritis, Lisa knew he couldn't get far on his own, so she was shocked to get a call that Sunday from a shelter in Bentonville, AR — more than 200 miles from her home in Missouri.'
Turns out, Captain was mistaken for a lost dog by a traveler and picked him up.
'Captain had been brought into the shelter by a woman who had been traveling in Missouri and thought she had found a lost dog. Luckily, Captain was microchipped years before, so the shelter was able to scan his microchip and connect with Lisa quickly,' the release said.
Wood wasn't able to make the full five-hour drive to pick up Captain, so she looked to Best Friends Animal Society, an animal welfare organization, to help her out.
'When Best Friends got the call, they quickly jumped into action. That same day, Dani Rakestraw, Specialist, Training and Behavior at Best Friends jumped in the van and drove Captain to Branson, MO —halfway between Bentonville and West Plains — to reunite with Lisa,' the release described.
Then came the happy reunion.
'Captain is an absolute joy,' Wood said. 'We've had him since he was just a few months old, and he's just the smartest dog. He's really part of the family — he loves my kids, and he even helps me teach and train the other dogs.'
West Plains is about a 205-mile drive southwest from St. Louis.
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