A Pingtung man on Sunday recovered his lost miniature pinscher, Happy, who had been missing for more than a month, after a police search matched the dog with a hand-drawn picture hand-drawn by the owner.
The man, surnamed Chen (陳), contacted officer Lee Shang-hsun (李尚勳) at the Shih Guang (石光) Police Station in Fangliao Township (枋寮), who then found Happy after searching the area nearby for an hour.
Netizens praised Lee for having “eagle eyes” after he was able to spot the small dog from a distance with only a drawing to guide him.
Photo: Chen Yan-ting, Taipei Times
Chen first contacted the police on Sunday morning at about 9am, after having searched exhaustively on his own and soliciting help through the Internet.
Happy had gone missing after Chen left it home one day while out on errands. He offered a reward of NT$6,000 on Facebook and the messaging service Line when he failed to find Happy on his own.
Few people raise miniature pinschers in Taiwan and the breed is often mistaken for a Chihuahua. In his drawing of Happy from different angles, Chen detailed all of the dog’s distinctive features for police, including a small patch of white fur on the mostly black dog and a mole on its face.
Happy walks with an elegant gait that is both handsome and cute, Chen told police.
Lee said Chen was visibly distraught when first speaking with him, describing the sadness at walking through town without Happy at his side.
He added that he was deeply moved by Chen’s drawing of Happy and compelled to search for the dog at once.
Happy was found roaming an industrial road across from the local cemetery, Lee said.
When he approached, Happy seemed to know that he was there to bring him back to Chen, Lee said, adding that Happy sat quietly by the roadside and waited for him.
When he got close he was able to identify the mole and other features Chen had detailed, he said.
Lee immediately called Chen and had him brought by a fellow officer to the roadway to identify Happy.
Happy waited patiently for the two men to arrive, immediately running to Chen’s side when he got there, Lee said.
Chen hugged Happy and thanked Lee repeatedly, Lee said.
Netizens joked that Chen’s photograph resembled that of a rabbit, asking whether that was the reason Happy had not been found sooner.
They praised Lee for completing an “impossible mission.” Lee dismissed the compliments and joked that the picture was very interesting.
“Seeing how happy both dog and owner were on being reunited made me quite happy as well,” Lee said.
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