Dog Journeys 500 Miles to Reunite With His Owner

How far would you go to be reunited with your dog if you got separated from him? Bucky, a 3-year-old Labrador, took matters into his own paws and managed to travel 500 miles, from Virginia to South Carolina, to be reunited with his dog dad, Mark Wessells.

According to ABC News, Bucky went to live with Wessells’ dad in Winchester, Va., back in January because dogs were banned from his Myrtle Beach, S.C., neighborhood.

After months of living in Virginia, Bucky couldn’t take being away from his dog dad and managed to high-tail it all the way to South Carolina by himself. He was wandering around at 2 a.m. when local resident, Brett Gallagher, was walking his dog and spotted him.

Gallagher took Bucky in and fed him a proper diet since the Lab had lost a lot of weight on his travels from Virginia. He looked for ads that described the lost dog, but didn’t have any luck.

When he took Bucky to an animal hospital to have him examined, veterinarian Dr. Amanda Thomas found a microchip revealing Bucky’s real name and his owner’s phone number.

“He was going nuts when the vet called him by his real name. His ears went right up,” Gallagher told ABC News.

When Wessells got the phone call that Bucky was at the animal hospital, he went to Virginia to be reunited with his beloved pooch.

“I thought I was going to cry, but I didn’t. He definitely recognized me instantly,” Wessells told WPDE. “It’s just crazy he made it down here on his own. You know, it’s like ‘Homeward Bound,’ is what I’m thinking.”

While it’s still unclear how Bucky managed to travel 500 miles by himself, Dr. Thomas thinks it may be due to the dog’s keen sense of smell. When Bucky returned to his owner’s house, he rolled around in blankets, happily sniffing the smell of home.

PHOTO: Manfred Scheid

Amelia LeRutte

Amelia Lerutte is a public relations and social media expert, and a pack leader to a couple derpy Boston Terriers, a lovable Leonburger and a Keeshound. When not writing or promoting the i Love Dogs brand, Amelia is an avid NHL fan, ice hockey player and video gamer.