Lost dog from Idaho found in Tennessee five months later

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A dog named Jake is back with his owner from Idaho thanks to the kindness of some strangers nearly 2,000 miles away in Memphis.

Lisa Corbett of Boise says Jake, her 26-month-old Australian shepherd, had been missing for five months. Though Corbett says Jake was tagged and microchipped, he never turned up and she believes he might’ve been stolen.

But she got a lucky break the day before Thanksgiving, when Grace Animal Hospital in Memphis called her after scanning Jake’s microchip.

A woman in town had spotted Jake wandering the streets late at night, and he reportedly jumped right in her car when she opened the door. The rescuer took Jake to the veterinarian.

Corbett immediately got on a plane to Memphis for a reunion months in the making.

“I just can’t even believe he’s here, it’s just so surreal,” she said Friday evening, as she and Jake stopped on the road to eat ice cream.

Though she doesn’t know exactly how Jake ended up so far from home, Corbett had pieced together some details.

Someone messaged her on Facebook saying she’d picked up a hitchhiker in Boise who was traveling with a dog who had a hurt paw. According to that person’s account, the hitchhiker was on his way to Kentucky, and she dropped off the pair in Memphis.

Corbett said Jake is in good health, although he’s a little too fat, likely from eating junk food.

“This guy is like a Disney character,” she said. “He’s so friendly, he’s way too friendly.”

Corbett and Jake were on their way to Nashville on Friday, before flying to Seattle, then driving back to Boise.

This article was first published by fellow CNN affiliate WREG. It is used here with permission.