Recently, a little dog named Truvy entered a doctor’s office waiting room, where two strangers greeted her. At first, the 3-year-old pup cautiously approached the man and woman, unsure of what they wanted. After all, Truvy had been taking care of herself for some time, so she didn’t easily trust others.

Moments later, everything clicked — she knew them.

“We received a call from a lady that lives across the major road near the cemetery,” Cindy Nash, founder of Nicholas’ Pet Haven, told The Dodo. “She said the little dog had been there a year, but she was getting braver and they were afraid she might try crossing the road. She wanted to know if we could come and try to get her.”

Later that day, the rescue group ventured out to find the stray pup and set humane traps. There, they met Dr. Harshivinderjit S. Bains, who’d been watching over Truvy from a distance.

“He told me he really loves that dog and wanted to take her home,” Nash said. “She had been living inside his clinic as it was being built and managed to stay there all last winter when it was so cold. He provided her with bedding, food and water for a year but could never touch her.”

Nash returned that evening and, surprisingly, little Truvy sat inside the trap, ready for rescue.

“I brought her to my house not knowing how she would act,” Nash said. “I sat on the floor and opened the cage. She ran straight into my lap and I got the biggest kiss [imaginable]. She was an absolute doll. Covered in sticker burrs, I put her in the tub and started cutting out the matted mess. She was so happy to be saved, and it melted my heart.”

The following day, Nash took Truvy to the vet, where they found a microchip.

“We called the family, and they were ecstatic!” Nash said. “They moved to Texas a year ago and Truvy went outside in her new yard. Little did they know, she could squeeze through the iron fence, [and] off she went!”

Truvy had been missing for nearly 13 months at the time of her rescue.

“[When Truvy went missing] we immediately canvassed the neighborhood, on foot and in cars,” Amy Logan, Truvy’s mom, told The Dodo. “For the next few months I drove, searching for her. I also emailed all the vet clinics, shelters and rescue groups within 60 miles in case she was picked up by someone that wasn’t local.”

For that reason, Logan made sure Truvy’s microchip stayed up to date.

“While we never gave up on finding her, after over a year, it was still a shock finding out she was not only found, but in good health after all she had been through,” Logan said.

The next day, Logan reunited with Truvy.

“It took her a minute to figure out that it was her mom,” Nash said. “By the time they got her home, she was settling down and knew she was home safe and sound. She was just one lucky little girl.”

You can watch Truvy’s reunion with her family here:

Dr. Bains was disappointed he didn’t get to give Truvy a forever home, but he found contentment knowing Truvy had settled back in with her family, where she’s been happily playing with her toys.

“She’s not the same shy girl she was a year ago,” Logan said. “[But] I can’t express how grateful I am to Dr. Bains for everything he did to care for and protect her.”

Thanks to all the teamwork between the rescue, Dr. Bains and everyone in between, Truvy and her family are now making up for lost time.