Woman and beloved dog have been apart for 11 years and you have to see the moment they reconnect

How many Facebook friends do you have? Do you keep up with distant family and sometimes old flames or people you went to school with? Most users love chatting with friends and sharing moments from their lives. But for Iris Candelaria, Facebook has become much, much more.
Eleven years ago, at a low point in her life, Candelaria met Bebe, a Yorkie/Maltese cross. She was suffering from depression and meeting the little dog was a turning point for her. She wasn't even looking for a dog, but she simply knew he came into her life for a reason. “I instantly fell in love with him. He was just so little and looked like a stuffed teddy bear,” Candelaria recalls. “I thought, ‘You know what? I think it’s time for us to get a dog.’”
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Candelaria's daughters instantly fell in love with the tiny dog. He followed them around the house like, well, like a puppy, shadowing their every move. No matter where they were, Bebe was right at their heels. If they were lying down, he was curled up tightly against them. He became a member of the family. They decided to have him microchipped so if he ever got lost, they'd be able to get him back. Little did they know how crucial that decision would become.
For a year and a half, Bebe was an integral part of the family. Then one day he went out into the fenced yard to play—and disappeared. He was just gone. Candelaria hung lost dog posters everywhere. She called animal control and all the local shelters. No one had seen her beloved little dog.
Days went by and Candelaria worried herself sick over Bebe. He was so little, so helpless without his family. She was concerned that on his own, he wouldn't survive. Her greatest hope was that someone kind would find him and take good care of him.
After years had gone by with no idea of what had happened to her beloved dog, Candelaria finally decided to get another dog. But instead of one dog, she got three. First she adopted two pit bulls, named Sir Fatty and Mia, and then she took in a stray terrier she called Croissant. She and the girls loved the new dogs, but every now and then, Candelaria would find herself checking online to see if anyone reported finding a little Yorkie/Maltese mix.
And that's when Facebook came into play. “I got a message on Facebook asking if I had ever owned a Maltese-Yorkie mix,” Candelaria said. “They had scanned [the microchip of] a dog who came into the veterinary clinic in really bad shape and had come up with my information. I was like, ‘This is crazy, I can’t believe this is happening.’”
More than a decade had passed. Could this possibly be her Bebe? The clinic sent her a picture, and even with the passage of time, it was clear. “He was sedated, and they had had to cut off all his matted hair, but I knew it was him,” Candelaria said. “It was the same little face.”
Poor Bebe had a tale to tell—if only he could. He was badly neglected and had obviously been living outdoors. His paw was badly wounded and he only had a few teeth left. Hesitantly, the vets posed the question: did she want him back? “I was like, ‘Of course I want my dog back! Why wouldn’t I want my dog back?’” Two days later, Candelaria and her daughter drove to the clinic to be reunited with him. “I was so nervous because I didn’t think he’d remember me,” Candelaria said, “but we had this special way of talking to him, so I hoped that when he heard us, he’d remember.”
“I gave up hope for a long time,” Candelaria said. “And it opened my eyes that sometimes miracles do happen. Anything is possible.” With Bebe back home for just a week now, Candelaria is still amazed. The other dogs took little Bebe in like he'd always been there. And perhaps they knew another dog had lived there before, and had never truly left. Dogs have a special sixth sense that tells them when things are wrong—and when they are very, very right.
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Is your pet microchipped? If not, seriously consider having it done today. In this big, constantly changing world, you never know what tomorrow may bring. Share Bebe's story with your friends and encourage everyone to take the time to have their own beloved pets microchipped. Someday, you may be very glad you did!