Chihuahua ‘Sweet Pea’ Is Reunited With Her Owner After Being Lost For 5 Years

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Miracles do, indeed, happen. Just in time for the holidays, a Chihuahua who was reunited with her owner went viral because of the time it took for her to find her way back home: five years, specifically.

The Chihuahua, whose name is Sweet Pea, was discovered by the Humane Society on Tuesday afternoon in Covina–almost 30 miles away from her owner.

Sweet Pea went missing in Compton, California in 2015 and her owner, Ursula Lopez had long giver up hope of ever finding her. But a few days ago, Lopez received a call from the Inland Valley Humane Society that they had found Sweet Pea wandering around in Covina–almost 30 miles away.

The long-awaited reunion was captured on video by a local news station.

In the video, an animal handler brings out Sweet Pea as Lopez waits patiently on a nearby bench. Lopez appears to be emotional as Sweet Pea is brought closer to her. After the handler places Sweet Pea in Lopez’s arms, the reunion is complete.

When asked what it means to her to have Sweet Pea back, Lopez said: “It means the world to me.”

Sweet Pea was a little worse for the wear, looking a bit grey around her face, her nails long and haggard. But soon, the pup was packed into Lopez’s car, looking cozy and comfortable on a doggie bed.

Lopez’s parting words about Sweet Pea were truly heartwarming: “She’s ready to go home.” We bet she is.

The Inland Valley Humane Society was able to located Ursula Lopez because Sweet Pea had been microchipped.

Microchipping is a procedure in which a small radio-frequency transponder that is the size of a grain of rice is injected under the loose skin of your pet’s shoulder blades. Rescuers can locate a pet’s owner if the unique ID associated with the chip is registered in a national pet-recovery database.

Every year, roughly 10 million pets become lost from their owner. But if a pet is microchipped, they are approximately 50% more likely to be reunited with their owner.

We’re glad that Lopez has her doggie to snuggle up with during the holidays. We hope she holds on to her tight.