Florida family reunites with missing dog found months later in New York

OCALA, Fla. - An Ocala family is preparing for an emotional reunion after their missing dog was found more than 1,000 miles away in New York.

Apollo, a 13-year-old Shih Tzu, disappeared from the Josey family's home in April after getting out through a gate. 

‘We definitely kept the faith’

The backstory:

After months of searching, the family received an unexpected call from a Long Island animal shelter, where staff identified Apollo by scanning his microchip.

The Joseys said the person who initially found Apollo near their home tried to locate his owners by asking a neighbor before leaving with the dog. They filed a report with the Marion County Sheriff's Office but were told the case did not qualify as theft because the finder had attempted to return the dog.

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The mystery deepened when Apollo arrived at the New York shelter wearing a name tag that identified him as "Yuri."

"She goes, 'Well, the dog came in and has a name tag called Yuri.' And I said, 'His name's not Yuri. His name is Apollo Franklin Josey,'" said Vera Josey.

Despite the uncertainty surrounding how Apollo ended up in New York, the family said they never gave up hope.

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"We definitely kept the faith, held out hope. We still got his dog food, we still got his toys, we've still got all his stuff. So we knew Apollo was gonna come home. It was just a matter of when," she explained.

Nick Josey is flying to New York on Friday to bring Apollo home.

"I'm probably gonna cry. He was our child for 13 years before we had kids. Some people say he was spoiled, but we say he was well loved," he said.

The family is especially looking forward to introducing Apollo to their newborn son. 

"I can't wait for him to meet his baby brother," Vera Josey added.