DJ, golden retriever

Dog lost on Hatteras during Irene found
Couples public plea leads to dog's return
Updated: Tuesday, 06 Sep 2011

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) - Virginia Beach residents Matt and Betty Ann Desroches posted a plea for help on YouTube after one of their three Golden Retrievers disappeared from their beach house in Hatteras Village.

"There were some kids lighting fireworks on the beach so we're figuring he may have gotten spooked and ran off. Ah, but what happened to him after that we don't know," Matt said.

D.J. was last seen on August 23 and three days later the Desroches were forced to evacuate the island, with Hurricane Irene heading straight for the Outer Banks.

"We were afraid that someone from New Jersey or Pennsylvania who was vacationing there had taken him off and it was going to be extremely difficult to find him," Betty Ann explained.

Their online plea touched the hearts of people miles away from their North Carolina home.

A woman who rescues labradors contacted them from another part of North Carolina.

"...she was notified about DJ being missing by someone who saw the video in Australia," Matt said.

Nine days later, the Desroches received the phone call they had been waiting for. DJ had returned to their Hatteras home.

"His hair was dirty and matted as if he'd been living in the marshes and woods for days. They had figured he weathered the storm outside by the condition he was in," Matt added.

But the condition of Highway 12 after the storm made a reunion impossible.

Until the SPCA in Manteo, North Carolina stepped in to retrieve the wayward retriever and reunite him with his family.

10 days and one hurricane later, the family was back together again.

Social media helped with the search, but Betty Ann believes something greater helped DJ find his way home.

Watch the whole home video at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAg4byW9-bI&feature=youtu.be

A lot of people prayed for us and we did too. And I think that's what made the difference," Betty Ann said. "I really feel like it's a miracle that we have him back."

Source: http://www.wavy.com/dpp/weather/hurricane/dog-lost-on-hatteras-during-irene-found