Oklahoma dog found 1,000 miles from home: "I could not believe he had made it all the way to North Carolina"
Tulsa, Oklahoma – A dog named Rio was missing for about two weeks. His owner, Melissa Burris, was bowled over when she got a call from a rescue in Greensboro, North Carolina – more than 1,000 miles away.
Ten-year-old Australian shepherd Rio is an escape artist, according to his human Melissa Burris.
Burris adopted Rio a year ago and says he's known for his lone-dog antics and escapes, though he usually does return home.
When Rio didn't come back one day in mid-July, Burris got worried and started looking.
"I posted in every local group I could find, looking for him, and just kept keeping the search alive," Burris told ABC7. She refused to give up hope.
Luckily, she got a call two weeks later, but the caller wasn't from her home state of Oklahoma. The person on the phone was from Guilford County Animal Services in Greensboro, North Carolina!
"When I got that call that he had been found, I was just floored," Burris said, adding, "I could not believe he had made it all the way to North Carolina."
Dog's micro chip made all the difference
Rio was found on the streets of Greensboro, and a good Samaritan took him to the Guilford County Animal Services.
"That's when we scanned him for a microchip and then realized that the microchip was registered, and then we started doing our detective work on trying to find the owner," Jorge Ortega, the shelter director, told ABC.
"It's a huge mystery on how Rio ended up [getting] from Oklahoma to Greensboro," Ortega added.
Burris didn't hesitate when she got the call. She jumped on a plane to pick up her beloved dog and drove him home in a rental car.
"We'll never probably know what he went through over those two weeks, but I'm happy to see the smiles back on his face," Burris said.
After his 1,000 mile adventure, Rio is "doing great," according to his owner. Burris says, "He's been all smiles since he got home."
Cover photo: Facebook/Screenshot/Melissa Burris