From Latina, Italy, comes a heartwarming story that will surely leave you teary-eyed. 

Losing a dog might be one of the most heart-wrenching moments for a dog owner. Without any doubt, every loving owner would give everything to have their precious pup return to them.

However, even if you do your best to find your missing dog, sometimes it just doesn’t happen. As heartbreaking as it is, some dogs just never return to their home.

That’s exactly why this story about a little dog named Maya seems like it came straight out of a movie… a real miracle.

A Heartwarming Reunion After 8 Years  

Source: Facebook

In August 2011, a little Chihuahua named Maya disappeared without a trace. According to Silvia Fondacaro, Maya’s owner, she and her husband went to the beach that day.

Maya was left with Silvia’s mother, who at one point, briefly went to the market to buy something. When she returned, she noticed that Maya was nowhere to be seen. Desperate, she immediately notified Silvia.

As soon as Silvia and her husband returned home, they started searching for Maya everywhere.

They searched far and wide and even reported that Maya was missing. But, they had no luck. “I looked for her everywhere, for months and months… I buzzed all the houses in the area, and I even put up missing dog posters in the city,” said Silvia, in an interview for Corriere.it.

She realized that Maya had been kidnapped, and she was desperate.

As the years went by, Silvia eventually lost all hope that she would ever find her beloved pet.

Then, something remarkable happened.

At the beginning of August 2019, exactly eight years later, Silvia received a phone call from an organization called Guardie Zoofile Ambientali Norsaa Latina. This is an Italian organization for the protection of animals.

After 8 years of silence and constant searching, Maya was miraculously found.

Source: Facebook

Thanks to the caretakers that work for the organization, a microchip that Maya was equipped with, and a lady that reported seeing a dog wandering the streets, the dog that was missing for 8 years was finally brought home.

“It was surreal. At first, I thought it was a joke. I was about to pass out from all the emotions. I just started to cry,” said Silvia, commenting on how she still gets chills remembering it.

Source: Facebook

However, it wasn’t easy for the caretakers to find Silvia; the rightful owner. Although Maya had a microchip, the number that was provided years ago (at the time of registration) was no longer active.

They had to do a little investigation to trace down Silvia, but thankfully, they managed to find her and contact her about her missing pup.

Source: Facebook

This is why they constantly remind all owners about reporting any changes regarding the safety of their pets, as well as updating personal information regarding their address and telephone number, so that all owners can be promptly notified by competent authorities.

All the pain and sadness, which accumulated over the years, immediately disappeared upon seeing her beloved pet.

Source: Facebook

Maya was at first a little fearful and wary, but when she realized that Silvia was indeed her owner whom she hadn’t seen for eight years, her joy was uncontrollable.
“When I reached out for her, Maya lunged at me. I sobbed and she licked my face. She recognized me and her house.”
It was such a touching moment that no one could remain indifferent.

Maya returned home eight years older, with a few white hairs on her face and looking different than they remembered her, but it was still their little, beloved Maya.

Source: Facebook

“Now that she’s back, she follows me everywhere… even to the bathroom. She steals my shoes and sleeps on them.”

Although Maya was found in seemingly good condition, she still had to be operated on for a hernia. Silvia suspects that it was all due to bad sterilization and many, many births.

As she said in the story report for Mediaset Infinity, she believed that they had exploited her to the maximum in order to make more money, and then they abandoned her.

Thankfully, Maya is now where she has always belonged… at home.

She’s healthy and very happy, and she gets to play with her brother, Lucky, which is a mix of Chihuahua and Pomeranian.

This remarkable story is a great example of how hope must never die. Just when you least expect it, your beloved pet can return out of nowhere and bring you enormous happiness.