“ After talking with staff , we ’re almost positive it ’s him ! ”

In April 2018 , Eileen and Chuck Russell think they lost their sweetsenior pooch , Rocky , for just . He rove off their Central Texas property one night and , even after put up posters and canvassing by car and ATV for a long time , they never found him .

" My effrontery at that tip was , because we dwell in the nation and there ’s a lot of coyotes , coyotes had plausibly gotten him , " Russell toldKCEN 6 .

This winter , a good samaritan find a honeyed older hot dog on the side of the route who was macerate and could hardly stand . KCEN 6 reported that they lease him to theHumane Society of Central Texas(HSCTX ) , but " it was empty the creature was sick . veterinary surgeon did n’t think he had many days left . " unluckily , the 15 - year - quondam pooch hadcancer . HSCTX made the decision to muster in the supporter ofOld Souls Animal Rescue and Retirement Homein Waco , a foster programme , so this older statesdog , who rescuers named Batiste , would n’t have to spend his remaining days in a shelter .

But , in a surprising turn of events , Batiste got good ! " He use up like a champ , he use the doggy door on his own , and he is in great spirits survive with dogs and cat who know to be soft with him , " HSCTX observe with a Facebook post on February 7 . " We do n’t know how much time he has go out but he is not leaving for theRainbow Bridgeany time shortly . "

By sheer chance , Eileen Russell blob this post . " Was Batistechip checkedwhen he come in ? " she comment . " He looks just like my dog Rocky who disappeared three age ago . He was 12 at the time . " According to KCEN 6 , an interchange of earphone yell and photographs of a younger Rocky made Eileen believe that Batiste at the HSCTX was in reality the couple ’s long - lose puppy .

" I am go to get him today . After talking to staff we are almost positive it is him 💙 😭 " she posted a few hours later .

Actually , Chuck was n’t so sure . " Eileen say , ' Is this Rocky ? ' My immediate thought was no , dead not . Rocky ’s idle , " he say in his KCEN 6 audience . " How can a dog pull round three years ? " But the dyad went to the HSCTX the next 24-hour interval .

Now , Batiste was a minuscule trumping around the edge , in genus Cancer convalescence , and render to adapt to a new way of life . When Eileen first insure him , she had doubts , too . " My first thinking was , ' that ’s not my dog ' because he had shrunk so much , " she distinguish KCEN 6 . But after a few pats , she felt a little knot behind his capitulum — one she hump Rocky had . " I was like , ' this is him ! ' " Awwww !

As the video above show , Rocky is happily stray the Russell homestead once again , thanks to a squad of consecrate animal rescuers and pet parent who never drop off hope .