Sure, a dog is man’s best friend, but for how long?

The obvious answer is “for their entire life”, but the real question that arises is: do dogs remember us after we are separated for a long time?

Science has shown dogs have short-term memory and lack long-term memory, which is what humans possess and it helps us remember specific events for a long time, and go back to them in order to make current decisions.

While dogs don’t have this ability, they seem to have what’s called “associative” memory.

As the term itself suggests, this kind of memory allows them to associate smells, sounds, or people with certain emotions and act accordingly in future situations.

This and much more has made experts conclude that our dogs will actually remember us forever.

Even after we are gone. After all, there have been recorded more than a few cases in which dogs go to their owners’ graves and wait for them to come back.

So, knowing all this makes it easier to understand how the lovely dog in the video below.

She recognized her owner after they had been apart for three years.

Pakita the dog used to be a family pet. She used to live with her best friend and they spent so much fun time together, enjoying the good life!

Until, one day, Pakita got lost and never came back.

While no further details have been made public regarding Pakita’s disappearance, it is clear that her human never gave up the thought he would see her again one day. He was convinced the two of them would at some point be reunited.

He kept looking for her for years.

On the other hand, Pakita was a lucky girl. While she could have been a victim of animal abuse or she could have been run over by some car while roaming the streets homeless and desperate, she was taken care of by a bunch of good people.

Indeed, a local shelter found her and took her in.

They made sure she was healthy, and they kept her with them until a family could be found for her, too.

Or, at least, that’s what they thought, because having her former owner come back and reclaim her must have sounded like a crazy idea. Especially after all these years.

But life is full of surprises and sometimes the unexpected happens!

After three years of Pakita living at the shelter, her former owner found her. He had never lost hope, and he was right.

When the man got to the shelter, it was obvious that the dog did not recognize him.

After all, years had passed- he might have changed a bit, and probably Pakita had anyway gotten suspicious towards anyone she saw after the shock of her going missing.

But, as the man kneels in front of her and she approaches to sniff him, she immediately gets it: it’s her best friend!

Then the dog starts wagging her tail right away! The man is excited, too, and starts hugging her and giving her head and belly rubs.

Oh, how she must have missed his smell! She then goes crazy, wagging her tail non-stop and jumping on him as if to hug and kiss him!

The shelter staff is enthusiastic about their reunion, too, as we can hear in the background!

What a heartwarming reunion! It will definitely make you love dogs even more!

See Pakita’s heartwarming reaction to seeing her owner after all these years in the video below.

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Source: The Dodo, My Animals