An adorable dog named Cleo just had a grand adventure, and it's one her owners will be talking about for a long time to come. 

Colton and Brittany Michael bought their home in Lawson, Missouri, about two years ago and had not known much about the previous owners, other than seeing their name on documents when they purchased the home. But about a week ago, the Michaels came home to find a dog curled up on the porch—and she seemed like she knew her way around.  

The 4-year-old border collie-lab mix was a sweet girl, and she seemed a little confused but acted as if she belonged at the house. She was timid and did not really want anyone to come near her. Eventually, Colton was able to get close enough to take her to a vet and found out she was microchipped. After getting the chip scanned, he learned that the dog was named Cleo and that she was not just a regular neighborhood stray. As it turns out, Cleo was part of the family that had sold the house to Michael and his wife, and the family had since moved about 60 miles away to Olathe, Kansas. 

Image courtesy of Google Maps. 

Colton was able to find Cleo’s family after doing a search on Facebook. He saw that they had posted online about her going missing on a missing animal page about a week earlier. After getting in touch with Cleo’s family, who were super-relieved to know she was safe, arrangements were made for them to come and pick up the sweet girl. 

The Michaels say she perked up as soon as she saw her owners' car pull up in the driveway, and even though they had face masks on, she was extremely excited and happy to see them.

The family says they were shocked when they got the call that Cleo had made it all the way to their previous home. 

Drew Feeback, a member of Cleo’s family, told a local news station:

“It’s the most bizarre story. Really, she’s everything to us and to my mother. It just feels really good to be reunited with her.”

It is just under 60 miles from Olathe, Kansas to Lawson, Missouri. Google Maps says it will take one hour and four minutes to travel the 59.7 miles by car between the two cities. Cleo was gone for about a week and had to cross the Missouri River on the long walk to her old home. No one is sure exactly how long it took Cleo to make the journey, what she encountered along the way, or why she felt she needed to head all that way to her old house. 

This is a great reminder to get pets microchipped. The information can save an animal’s life, and can certainly help in situations like the one Cleo found herself in. What a delightful story of an amazingly dedicated dog and a few wonderful humans who made sure this "tail" had a happy ending.