The friendship between an animal and a child is unbreakable. No matter how much time passes or the experiences they have to live, they will always love each other unconditionally, until destiny brings them together again in the warmest of hugs. They knew each other since they were little.

This was what happened to a beautiful Brazilian boy named Elías Neto, barely five years old, who refused to accept the loss of his best dog friend, even though more than a year had passed since his disappearance.

Eduardo Barros is the human father of Ikki, the Dalmatian mix dog who loved to go for a walk at night in his Mocambinho neighborhood, in the North Zone of Teresina; until he once did not return again. At that time he was already two years old and had grown up with his best human friend, Elías. They have always loved each other.

“We let him take walks alone in the following blocks, but on Father’s Day last year he went further away and never came back,” Eduardo said.

Ikki’s family had almost no hope of being reunited with him after he disappeared without a trace on August 9, 2019. But, after more than a long year, on August 17, a light of hope finally appeared in their lives, especially for Elías.

“My son always told me that he missed Ikki. People would occasionally look for him around the neighborhood, some people would say they saw a similar dog, but they never took a photo. I didn’t think he would find it,” the man stated.

Fortunately, a person saw Ikki on the street and took some photographs, sharing the image with animal protection groups. The photo reached Eduardo and he realized that the little dog was about 3 kilometers from his house.

“I spoke to my brother and at that moment we went to look for him. He is going to live again in my mother’s house. Every day I leave my son there, that’s why we have daily contact,” says Eduardo.

When Ikki was home again, he went in and lay down on the terrace, as if he had never been far from his family, who welcomed him with hundreds of pamperings and together they will leave all the past behind.

The most important thing is that Ikki is now under the security of his home and with the friendship of little Elías, who never lost faith in seeing him again and being able to hug him once again. Congratulations on this pair of beautiful little ones! It was an unforgettable moment. Don’t leave without sharing this emotional story with all your friends and remember to never lose hope of being reunited with your loved ones.