A 12-year-old Saskatoon boy and his family are looking for a missing dog that holds a special connection to a loved one.
Jaiden Joseph’s late father gifted him the Shih Tzu-poodle one month before his death in 2009. Jaiden was four when his dad died in a rollover and Snuggles is the last link to his father.
“He’s a very special dog to me” Jaiden said.
Snuggles went missing almost eight years to the day of the death. Jaiden has little recollection of his dad.
"I know people are thinking he's just a pet, but he's more to us, he's part of our family,” said Jaiden’s mom Bonita Joseph. “(We’ve) had him for years. He sleeps with my son every night. It's his last connection with his dad.”
Snuggles has been missing since Monday morning after the front door their home wasn’t locked and a gust of wind opened it. Jaiden began crying when he discovered Snuggles escaped.
“When I come home he usually comes to the door when I open it, but he wasn’t there this time,” Jaiden said.
The family looked all over the neighbourhood, knocked on peoples’ doors and put up missing dog posters. They left the pet’s bed and favourite toy outside their home after hearing it may help him find his way home.
“I feel very sad still. I hope that he comes home to see us,” Jaiden said.
When he’s not outside searching for Snuggles, Jaiden has been waiting in his room, hoping for Snuggles to come home so he can sleep with him, bathe him and play together.
---Based on a report by CTV Saskatoon’s Moses Woldu
