Being an animal lover means that you are going to go through ups and downs. Sometimes you are on top of the world with your furry friend, and at other times, you may experience difficulties.

One of the most difficult things a pet owner can go through is losing their pet. It may happen in a number of different ways, but when they go missing, the stress and grief can be long-lasting.

Most people start out with a lot of hope, doing what they can to try to find their pets and bring them back home again. As the days turn into weeks and, eventually, months, you may lose some of the hope.

Never Give Up Hope

Then again, we sometimes hear stories that let us know not all hope is lost, even in the face of the most difficult circumstances. That is what we have below; it's a story of hope that is sure to bring a smile to your face.

It started out when a family in Florida lost their family dog. The dog went missing in August 2019, and they always hoped they'd be able to bring the dog back home again.

In the meantime, they still loved animals, and they wanted to add a new pet to the home. In order to do so, they visited a cat adoption event in Jacksonville, Florida.

That event was held at the local Petsmart. It was the Jacksonville Humane Society Generosity Breeds Joy adoption event.

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They went in the hopes of finding a feline friend to add to their home, but they ended up finding something they never could have expected.

A Familiar Face Appears

When they were at the event and standing in line, there was a brown and white dog who was also attending the event. He was there with the Humane Society, and he was getting ready for a walk.

When the father looked over at the dog, he suddenly recognized it as being his own. He knew that it looked a lot like the family dog that was missing since August, but could he possibly get his hopes up?

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He couldn't resist and shouted out: "That's my Dopey!" Everyone in the store heard him, and the dog heard him as well.

It was, indeed, the dog that he had lost in August, and he came running over to visit the family. There was a tearful reunion, not only for the family but for many that were standing nearby.

Dopey had been missing since August, but he was taken to the Humane Society in Jacksonville on October 1. Strangers had found him and thought he was a stray.

It's always a beautiful thing when you hear a story with a happy ending. Nothing could possibly have been happier than a family being reunited with their dog after months of searching.

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So this provides us with hope that even in the face of difficulty, as pet owners, we should never give up on our furry friends.