A happy reunion three years in the making shows how vital pet microchips are.

Three years ago, holiday fireworks prompted Pomeranian puppy, Teddy, to sprint away from home.

Fast-forward to this week.

A kind stranger spotted Teddy running alone, and decided to pick him up. That began the path of a very emotional reunion.

“Luck have it, some good Samaritan was traveling down the road, saw the dog, and brought it here, and we were able to scan it,” says Gwinnett County Animal Welfare Director Vernon Sawyer.

“Everything came together,” he tells WSB.

Sawyer says Teddy’s microchip, a rice-grain-sized piece of technology which holds a unique ID number, allowed them to reunite the dog with his humans; mom, dad, and elementary school aged sister.

Did Teddy remember them?

“The staff put the dog on the floor as they were walking him to the room where the family was waiting,” says Sawyer.

“That dog made a beeline for the mom. They were crying, my staff was crying, I was crying. It was just, it was a beautiful moment.”

Sawyer says they have helped reunite some 500 pets and families in Gwinnett County this year alone, the majority because they were microchipped. The chips can go into pretty much any animal with a lot of skin, he explains. The procedure doesn’t require anesthesia.

“In most places you can get it done from free to about $25.00,” Sawyer says.

Handheld scanners are carried by Gwinnett’s shelter officers who sometimes see a pet trotting around and will stop their vehicle to scan it and drop the animal off at its home. Sawyer says it’s especially important to get outdoor cats microchipped. They are also used when someone’s decided to try to make another person’s animal their own pet, and law enforcement can call an animal welfare officer to the scene to scan it on site and prove ownership.

“It’s cheap, it’s reliable, and it’s a great way that if your pet gets lost it’s an opportunity for that pet to be returned back to you,” he says.

©2023 Cox Media Group