Mrs. June Rountree and her husband had been scouring her neighborhood in Dothan, Alabama for several nights looking for their missing dog Abby, but could not find her. Three weeks later, an unexpected turn of events left them convinced that Abby is Dothan’s smartest or luckiest dog.
The 60-year-old woman realized that Abby had disappeared on November 8 of this year, when she went to the backyard of her house and did not find her there. The Rountree family searched the entire neighborhood for her black and white dog, but were unable to find her.
June has worked as a cashier at Walmart for many years, and on November 28 she was working her regular shift when she heard a commotion. She tried to watch what was happening and there was a black dog sneaking into the store, and people were trying to catch him.
Little dog was missing for several days
June said according to The Washington Post:
“I said: it can’t be!”
At that moment, June was still watching as various members of the staff followed the dog through all the corridors, but could not catch it.
Danielle Robinette, a Walmart worker, commented:
“I was like; What’s going on here? I am an animal lover, so I followed the animal and it ran to cash register number 6.”
Unbelievably it was Abby, and in that box was her mother, who was surprised and recognized by the white fur around her snout.
June commented:
“I called her by her name and she immediately answered, she came over, I leaned down and hugged her. The feelings got the better of me, I couldn’t speak, I was in shock and I couldn’t believe it.”
As the staff at her place surrounded her and her dog, June hugged Abby tightly for several minutes in silence.
Danielle said that her partner looked up with tears in her eyes, and told them that this was Abby, her dog who was missing.
June said:
“I couldn’t express what I felt, everyone was around me and I couldn’t even talk to them.”
Danielle began taking photos of the emotional moment and then shared them on Facebook. Her post quickly went viral, accumulating thousands of reactions.
In the midst of happiness, June assured that she had no idea where Abby had been for the past few weeks, or how she managed to locate her.
June said:
“I never thought she would show up at Walmart.”
The woman hoped for a reunion, but she always thought that Abby would be waiting for her in front of her house when she got home from work.
Walmart is about 1.5 miles away from the Rountree home, but Abby has never been inside the store. But her family had taken her to the parking lot and into the woods behind the store, repeatedly.
June commented:
“How she knew she worked there, I don’t know.”
Perhaps, the dog was wandering near the place and remembered that she had been there before, and she wanted to inspect if she could find help.
Clive Wynne, professor of psychology, gave his professional opinion:
“I suspect that the animal was roaming around at random places, until it found a familiar place to it. I think it is very likely that she was distressed and trying to find a safe home, the navigation of a dog is not perfect, but she recognizes certain points of reference….”
Another surprising point is that Abby was not malnourished, it seems that someone had been feeding her in all that time that she was missing.
June said:
“I want to thank whoever stepped up to him and gave him something to eat.”
After telling the story, June took her break for lunch and took Abby home, where she was reunited with Coco, her adoptive sister. After a good meal, Abby went straight to her comfortable bed, she snuggled up and fell asleep, she was very calm to be home.
June added:
“It really is incredible, it’s like a dream, you can’t make these things up.”
Images: Facebook / DANIELLE ROBINETTE/JUNE ROUNTREE
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