A man was reunited with his dog after it went missing for EIGHT years.

Paul Guilbeaut, 43, was moving from Haverhill, Massachusetts, to Mesa, Arizona when they made a pit stop in Oklahoma City.

After driving all day, Paul decided to take his beloved miniature Doberman pincher, Damian, now 13, for a walk but he managed to get loose from his lead and run off.

Paul, his dad and his friend, went out looking for Damian for eight days - putting flyers up and posting online but had no success.

For years, Paul continued to search for Damian but faced the reality that Damian was either with a new family or had died.

Eight years later, on January 15, 2025, Paul and his husband, Julian, 30, were driving to California to donate clothes to fire victims when he got a random text from the American Kennel Club saying that Damian had been found.

After a 13-hour drive, Paul and Damian were reunited and will not leave each other's side.

Paul, a photographer, artist and event producer, from Mesa, Arizona, said: "I went on for years searching and hoping we would find Damian but after a few years the search dwindled."

"I faced the reality that he was either dead or had been found by someone else."

"I really wish I knew what had happened to him all those years."

"Ever since we reunited we haven't skipped a beat, it was so surreal to see him."

"I didn't know how to feel apart from overwhelming joy and happiness."

Paul, his dad and his friend were travelling the 2,656 trip from Haverhill, Massachusetts, to Mesa, Arizona when they made a pit stop in Oklahoma City.

During pit stop, Paul decided to take Damian out for a walk but he managed to escape his lead and ran off - and Paul was unable to catch up.

"We continued searching for Damian until 1am when my dad said we should call it a night and head out again in the morning."

"We searched for eight days, we had to extend our hotel stay and extend our rental on our truck."

"We had spent thousands of dollars, but it got to the point where my dad said we had to move on to Arizona as we had spent too much money."

Paul said he never gave up hope, he would continue to post on Facebook groups and post his flyers to grab people's attention.

Sadly, the search dwindled and Paul said he accepted fate that Damian was gone.

Nearly a decade after he had lost Damian, Paul was driving to California to donate clothes to fire victims when he got a text to say that Damian had been found.

Paul said: "On the way up to California, I got a bunch of calls but I was driving so I didn't answer."

"I then got a text from the American Kennel Club saying that Damian had been found."

"I thought I was being scammed and didn't trust what I was seeing so my husband called the number and verified that it was real."

On New Year's Eve, Donna Bentley found Damian after nearly hitting him whilst driving.

She took Damian to her brother, Rick Chambers, who took Damian to the vet who scanned Damian for a microchip and found

Paul's contact details.

Paul and Damian were reunited after eight years apart on January 15, 2025, and Paul said it is like they have never been apart.

Damian is an old man now so when we were first reunited we had to go slow and take it easy.

"He has been an absolute dream, he is very easy like he was when he was younger and he likes to cuddle."

"Whenever I leave the room, he follows me as he doesn't want me to leave his side."

Paul has launched a GoFundMe page to help with the cost of vet bills as he is unsure where Damian has spent the last eight years.

Link to page: https://www.gofundme.com/f/reunited-after-8yrs-now-damian-needs-to-see-the-vet