Dog missing since Florida hurricane was found ‘skin and bones.’ Now, ‘fairytale ending’
A dog missing since a Florida hurricane was found “skin and bones” — then came an emotional reunion with his owner.
“To say I was overjoyed and overwhelmed doesn’t quite capture it,” Deborah Newell, who has had Miles since he was a puppy, told McClatchy News in a Dec. 31 email. “This was a true fairytale ending to what had been a heartbreaking hurricane story, of which there were so many in our part of Florida. We were all crying and hugging as we gave Miles clean water and a little kibble.”
Miles finally returned home nearly three months after Hurricane Milton unleashed flooding and powerful winds on Florida’s Gulf Coast in October. Miles’ family had taken him out before he escaped through a section of their fence that was damaged in the storm.
Right away, Newell said she printed flyers and spread the word about Miles on social media. Though she didn’t find him, she “never lost hope.”
Then, about 80 days after Miles disappeared from her home in Ruskin, his owner saw a Facebook post that caught her eye. A woman said she was fishing when she spotted a dog in need of help, so Newell went to the area to see if it was Miles.
Though Newell didn’t have luck, the story about the dog also caught the attention of Jinger Gordon, owner and founder of Beach Paws Dog Rescue. Rescuers searching the area found the dog “skin and bones and completely frightened,” according to a Dec. 27 Facebook post and video.
The animal organization took photos and sent them to Newell, who confirmed the dog was Miles. Within about five minutes, she was with rescuers as Miles hid in the woods near railroad tracks. She used a blanket with the scent one of her family’s other dogs to coax Miles out, leading to the heartwarming reunion.
“This was truly one of those ‘it takes a village’ moments,” Newell wrote. “And after dealing with so many fake messages and scammers, it was wonderful to realize that there are plenty of wonderful, loving people in our world, too.”
The pup was found about 3 or 4 miles from the family’s home, which runs along the railroad tracks, Gordon told McClatchy News in a phone interview. After the long-awaited reunion, Miles is on a special diet to gain weight.
“Astonishingly, Miles had no ticks, fleas, or ear-mites, and no broken bones or injuries,” Newell wrote. “The main health concern is that he’d been without food for so long: Miles’s normal, healthy weight was close to 100 lbs, but he now weighed just 43 lbs.”
Ruskin is a roughly 20-mile drive south from Tampa.
This story was originally published January 2, 2025 at 11:34 AM with the headline "Dog missing since Florida hurricane was found ‘skin and bones.’ Now, ‘fairytale ending’."
