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The issue of dogs wandering away from home and getting lost is still prevalent. Microchips have made a positive impact in locating missing dogs, yet there are still cases where heartbroken families never find their beloved pet.

Koko the Miniature Schnauzer got out of her fenced-in yard two years ago and disappeared despite her family’s best efforts to find her, but they recently had a joyful reunion.

The TikTok from @cbseveningnews shared Koko’s story, which started two years ago at her home in the Dallas area of Texas. Koko’s parents let her and her fur baby sibling outside in the backyard to run around, but Koko never returned.

“Apparently, [Koko] escaped through a gap in the fence line,” CBS anchor Tony Dukoupil explained, sharing that the Mini Schnauzer’s parents did everything in their power to find their precious pooch. After a long period of time, they had to accept that Koko was most likely gone forever.

However, Koko was spotted this month at the Clark Commons Shopping Center in New Jersey. How or why the lost dog ended up in a mall is still unknown. Police were able to locate Koko’s parents using a chip reader and called them with the good news.

“I started screaming,” mom Gloria Greer said, according to NJ.com. “We were just in shock.”

No one knows how the 6-year-old canine traveled over 1,300 miles on her own and survived. Koko had to navigate “quite a few obstacles along the way,” Dokoupil noted, “among them the Mississippi River, the Great Smoky Mountains, the Appalachians, almost the entire Eastern seaboard.”

Koko Instantly Recognized Her Family

Greer and her family are grateful to the police for their assistance in Koko’s return. After what the canine had endured on her two-year journey, the officers kept her at the station under their care while waiting to be picked up, rather than putting her in a shelter.

“As a dog lover amongst many other dog lovers, we were not going to make that puppy wait in a shelter or pound,” Police Director Patrick Grady said.

Greer and her husband, Will Piece, flew to New Jersey to finally get their fur baby. Koko immediately ran to her parents the second she saw them.

“I was overjoyed, but it was still that, ‘Oh, my God, is this real? Am I really holding my baby again?’” Greer shared.

Thankfully, Koko was found in good health with no apparent injuries. Greer even noticed the pooch had put on a few pounds.

Related: Lost Dog Reacts To Being Called By His Real Name and It’s the Best

Koko is now settled back at home and having fun with her sister, Khloe. The entire family considers their reunion a miracle.

“We’re all happy and it’s been wonderful,“ Greer said. “It is a huge blessing that we got our baby. We never thought we would see the day.”

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This story was originally published by Parade Pets on Mar 12, 2026, where it first appeared in the Pet News section. Add Parade Pets as a Preferred Source by clicking here.