When ACCT Philly picked up a senior stray on Saturday night, a routine microchip scan set off a chain of events a decade in the making – connecting the dog to a family that had never stopped looking for him.
The dog was Forty-Cal, stolen from a Philadelphia backyard in 2015 along with a second family dog. The other dog was eventually recovered, but Forty-Cal vanished.
His family searched for days. Days became weeks. Weeks became years.
“I thought it was a joke. It’s just amazing, and I can’t believe after years that he was brought back to us,” said owner Jourdyn, fighting back tears.
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The family had long since moved from Philadelphia to Luzerne County, Pennsylvania – a few hours away from the city where Forty-Cal disappeared. But even after relocating, they kept his lost pet report active and made sure his microchip information stayed current.
That decision made all the difference. When shelter staff scanned the stray’s chip on Saturday, the contact details were up to date, and they reached the family with news nobody expected.
Forty-Cal was alive. And he could come home.
Jourdyn said the family plans to make his remaining years as comfortable as possible.
“He’s very old, and he’s going to go home with us and just live his best life for the rest of the time that we have with him,” she said.
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The family hopes their story encourages other pet owners to keep microchip information updated – even when hope feels distant. Had the registration lapsed or the phone number changed, Forty-Cal’s chip would have been a dead end.
Instead, he’s sleeping at home for the first time in a decade.
