NEED TO KNOW

• Michelle Bluestone adopted Lola, a 3-year-old Schnauzer mix, in 2018

• The pup went missing after she escaped through a fence in the backyard

• Lola was found five years later, leaving Bluestone in “shock” after learning her dog was still alive

A Los Angeles woman was reunited with her beloved dog five years after the pet went missing. Her miraculous discovery was made on the side of a road on the other side of town.

Michelle Bluestone, who lived in Reseda at the time, adopted Lola, a 3-year-old Schnauzer mix, from a shelter in 2018. According to KTLA 5, the pair spent three “inseparable” years together before Lola managed to escape through the backyard fence in 2021 — every pet owner’s nightmare.

She wasn’t seen again until five years later, with Bluestone describing the ordeal as the “worst time of my life.”

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“I went through so much stress. I spent weeks and months looking for her, putting up flyers everywhere. She was microchipped, so I was waiting for a phone call that someone had found her,” the owner recalled of her efforts to get Lola back.

She even posted messages on local Facebook pages, asking strangers and fellow pet owners to “please help me find my baby.” In another post, she added, “I’m not sure if she ran off somewhere or someone took her but I miss her so much.”

But Bluestone did not hear anything and eventually came to terms with the fact that Lola might have died.

In the half a decade that her pup was missing, according to KTLA 5 and her own Facebook updates, Bluestone got married, started a new job, continued her education and moved to Simi Park. She even adopted another dog named Sunny.

But unexpectedly, in February 2026, Bluestone finally received a call that she never thought she’d get — Lola had been found alive.

The Schnauzer, who is now 11 years old, was spotted on the side of the road in Echo Park and taken to a police station. They contacted a local animal shelter, about an hour’s drive away from where Bluestone had moved to and roughly 30 minutes from Lola’s original home in Reseda.

“I was in such shock and couldn’t even believe it,” the dog lover recalled after being called by the animal shelter and told that Lola had been found alive.

In a clip obtained by the outlet, Bluestone was visibly emotional as she reunited with Lola, who was wrapped up in a blanket and held by a staffer at the shelter.

As soon as she allowed her dog to familiarize herself with her scent, Bluestone was seen with her hand over her mouth, appearing to shed a few tears.

According to KTLA 5, Lola had overgrown toenails and 11 rotted teeth that needed to be extracted after she was found, but Bluestone said her dog was, overall, in surprisingly good condition.

Lola has since made a full recovery and has been getting to know her new family members.

Read the original article on People