BRADENTON, Fla. — A Minnesota woman recognized her dog that's been missing for three years on a beer can from Motorworks Brewing in Manatee County.
Monica Mathis says she was scrolling through Facebook when she saw the viral story about adoptable dogs being put on beer cans at a Florida brewery.
"I saw one of the dogs on there and I was like 'oh my gosh, that looks like my dog,'" said Mathis.
Mathis says the dog named Day Day, looked like the dog she helped deliver as a puppy. A member of her family she says went missing from her Iowa home in 2017.
"I searched for her, I called shelters and couldn’t find her at all and eventually I moved back to Minnesota," said Mathis.
"She looked in the article and saw our name and she called us right away," said Hans Wohlgefahrt, with Manatee County Animal Services.
Wohlgefahrt said they checked and Day Day did have a microchip with Monica's first name, but her last name had changed and the information on it was outdated.
Mathis was able to provide paperwork to prove to Manatee County Animal Services that Day Day was actually her dog, Hazel.
"Once I got the confirmation I just couldn’t believe that this was actually my dog," said Mathis.
How Hazel got from Iowa to Florida is unknown.
"It’s just such a lucky and amazing story," said Wohlgefahrt.
Shelter Manatee says that even the likelihood of Day Day (Hazel) being one of the four chosen to appear on the can, was unlikely.
"For her to be on that can was amazing, and for it to go viral and of course for her family to see it in Minnesota," said Pam Frensi with Shelter Manatee.
Hazel’s transportation to Minnesota is being paid for by Friends of Manatee County Animal Services. And thanks to a beer can, Hazel gets to go home.
"We are just delighted that a Minnesota owner will be getting their dog back after three years because of what we did," said Denise Tschida, co-founder and president of Motorworks Brewing.
"The chance to be able to have her come home is amazing. I’m just so happy that I’m getting her back," said Mathis.
Manatee County Animal Services is working to get Hazel back to Minnesota sometime next week.
