A three-year-old German Shepherd named Rico disappeared in June 2019. According to his owners, Natasha Jones and George Harden, the dog ran out of the yard in pursuit of a toy, and in just a minute he was gone. The couple still do not understand how this could happen.
To find a pet, they, along with volunteers, searched the neighborhood, interviewed neighbors and checked surveillance cameras in the city. On one of them, a recording of how a stranger drags the dog along the street has been preserved, but no traces of the abductor could be found. George was trained as a service dog instructor and got a German Shepherd for work.
The pet stayed in the family for only four weeks, but became really dear to the family. Natasha and George searched for the dog for more than six months, but then left the search, resigned to the loss. And 14 months later, something incredible happened. One warm August afternoon, someone knocked on their door.
The sound was very faint and barely perceptible, and one of the family friends decided to check the front door and suddenly shouted: “There is a huge sheep dog here!” The couple immediately rushed to the porch and saw their Rico. He just stood and waited, and noticing the owners, he rushed towards them. “I never lost hope that someday I could find him,” says Natasha. “Every time I saw a German Shepherd, I hoped it was Rico.” According to the couple, life without their beloved friend was terrible.
The couple has no idea where he could have been for more than a year, but are happy that the dog has finally returned home. During his absence, Rico recovered greatly, gaining almost 20 kilograms. His owners believe that this was due to the fact that he was kept locked up for a long time without moving. But the family intends to do everything to restore his health.