A Pennsylvania mom was scanning local shelter sites looking for a perfect companion for her two boys—but what she found took her breath away.
Among the adoptable pets was the face of the beloved dog she’d lost more than two years ago.
At first, Aisha Nieves wasn’t sure the pup was her missing pitbull-rottweiler mix Kuvo, but a closer look revealed a small facial scar that confirmed her suspicions.
Nieves first brought Kuvo (named for a character in Disney’s Lion King franchise) home in 2014, when he was seven weeks old. In May 2019, her fence was damaged by a careless driver and Kuvo escaped.
She was four months pregnant with her second son at the time. “I had a lot of emotions going through me,” Nieves told The Morning Call. “I was crying, thinking the worst, thinking somebody kidnapped or hurt him. I was just devastated. He was there for me through everything, heartbreaks, ups and downs… and now he was gone. It was so hard to accept.”
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It turns out that Kovu was found in someone’s yard several weeks later. He was brought to the Lehigh County Humane Society, where he was christened “Ash.” After receiving medical care, he was eventually adopted.
Due to changing circumstances, however, the family who’d adopted Kuvo was forced to return him to the shelter this past June. “Ash” was put up for adoption a second time.
As soon as she realized Ash was, in fact, Kuvo—an ecstatic Nieves immediately contacted LCHS. Bringing along proof of ownership and an adoption fee, she rushed to the shelter to reclaim her fur baby.
While Nieves was a bit concerned that Kuvo might not remember her after being separated for so long, she needn’t have worried.
“He was screaming, trying to get away from the guy holding him and run to me,” Nieves told TMC. “Then, he just jumped on me and we started kissing and hugging. He sat on my lap. I told him, ‘Yeah, buddy, you’re going home. I’m so sorry this happened. Never again am I losing you.’”
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When a beloved pet goes missing, it feels as if there’s a hole in your heart. Now that Kuvo is home, Nieves says her heart is whole again.
This coming Christmas, will mark Kuvo’s seventh birthday, but for Nieves, her Christmas gift came early this year—and she couldn’t be happier.
(WATCH the ABC video of the pair as they reunite below.)
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