Dog Found After 2 Years: Murphy Makes Miraculous Return To Braun Family

After going missing on a camping trip, an El Dorado Hills dog was found after two years. Murphy had bolted after hearing what the family thinks may have been a gunshot, and against all odds the dog was eventually found and reunited with the family. WILX shared the heartwarming story ofMurphy Braun’s return.

Nathan Braun and his son Matthew had been camping in October 2012 near the Hell Hole Reservoir. Murphy got spooked and ran into the woods, and no amount of searching brought her back. Braun says he spent two days and nights searching tirelessly for the dog, to no avail. Eventually he had to head home and he says “It was the worst drive home.”

The family made missing posters for Murphy and put them around the Tahoe National Forest in hopes they could recover Murphy. They got a lot of tips on sightings, but nothing panned out. The family says they chased down dozens of potential leads, but they never gave up hope. The Brauns would even load up their three kids to go on camping trips or drives that were really scouting missions to look for Murphy, though the kids didn’t know that was the purpose.

Then, the dog was found after nearly two years. The Braun family was visiting the French Meadows Reservoir and they told the new camp director about their missing dog. The camp director, Jason Smith, said that he had actually seen a dog hanging around lately, though it was in pretty rough shape. There is a little bit of a dispute over exactly how Murphy was caught, but someone at the campground did get a hold of Murphy and the Brauns were called.

The dog has changed a lot after all this time, though they family says they feel sure this is their same dog because of a scar on her leg from a previous injury and stitches. Less than a week after she returned home, Murphy is eating, gaining weight, playing with the kids and rolling around on the floor.

Yahoo! News shares that Murphy was found about five miles from where she initially went missing. The family is, naturally, shocked that they have their dog back, but it certainly goes to show what some fierce determination and hope, along perhaps with a bit of luck, can accomplish. Every once in a while a missing pet story like this pops up, and people are touched and amazed in every instance. While nobody will ever know what Murphy experienced during her time away, everybody can admit it is heartwarming that the dog was found after two years of being missing.

[Image: Murphy Braun Facebook page]