When a one-year-old dog showed up in a Houston, Texas, shelter, it seemed like things would go as they normally did. The dog would come in, potential adopters would visit with her, and eventually she’d find a forever home. Staffers named her Zooey, and they were excited to get her in front of people who could give her the life she deserved.
But there was something on the back of their minds when she was dropped off. She was so gentle and very well-kept, so they wondered if she had a family out there somewhere that was missing her.
With that in mind, they made efforts to get her face out there to see if a family would come forward. Sadly, a week had passed and they’d heard nothing. That’s when Zooey went to Ruff Start Rescue and was put in a foster home.
The only downside was that Ruff Start was located in Minnesota, which is over 2,000 miles from Houston. “We were told that she was really, really sweet, and very dog friendly,” said Ruff Start’s Lexi Johnson. They loved her, but potential adoptions kept falling through. It was odd because Zooey was so sweet, but she had trouble listening to commands. That’s when Lexi realized that Zooey was deaf.
Oddly, though, that ended up working in her favor. A Facebook search for deaf dogs in shelters led Zooey’s mom, Mandy Lyons, right to her! As it turned out, Zooey’s real name was Penelope and Mom had never stopped looking for her.
And with that, Penelope made her way back to Texas for a sweet reunion with her mama!
It took half a second for Penelope to realize where she was, and who she was looking at but eventually she figured it out. According to Lexi, “[Penelope] looked at her, and she looked at her again and was like, ‘Is this real?’And then she went over there, she was like, ‘Oh yeah, this is it.’ I don’t think there was a dry eye in the house.”
Watch the adorable pair reunite in the video down below and share Penelope’s story if she made you smile!
You won’t believe this dog’s journey before being reunited with her family after five months ❤️We are so honored to be a part of this special reunion with our friends at Ruff Start Rescue!
Posted by Houston & Harris County Animal Volunteers on Friday, April 27, 2018
