Lost and Found! Missing Dog Located by Drone, Rescued After 10 Days in Woods: 'So Grateful'

"It was kind of like losing your child," said the owner of the missing golden retriever dog

This dog is reunited with his owners after being lost for 10 days — all thanks to a handy drone.

Gary and Debbie Morgan put up flyers and notes online earlier this month asking for help locating their missing dog Meadow, a 16-month-old golden retriever. The pup had last been seen in a wooded area in Andes, New York, and was missing for about a week when a stranger named Brian James came across the Morgans' plea for their lost pet.

The flyer offered a $500 reward and described Meadow as having a "small, stocky build [and a] pink collar."

James told ABC News that he thought he could help by bringing a new perspective to the search efforts, since he's a hiking guide and trained drone pilot.

"I’m realizing that [it] might be easy to see her from the air if we find her before snow [falls]," he said in a video recorded the day of his search, which proved fruitful. Adding in the same video, after locating a patch of white in a forested area, "Alright, I was able to get a visual on Meadow from the air."

Man uses drone to rescue dog lost for 10 days in the woods
Brian James. abc news/ youtube
Man uses drone to rescue dog lost for 10 days in the woods
Debbie and Gary Morgan with Meadow. abc news/ youtube

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According to the news outlet, James hurried to the spot where he saw Meadow was via the aerial viewpoint of the drone and rescued the dog, who wasn't hurt. The Morgans were then reunited with Meadow, 10 days after she first went missing.

"At the last second, he saw a small white dot on the forest floor. … It was Meadow," Gary said in the World News Tonight segment, getting emotional about the relief he felt in finding his dog.

Debbie added that she and Gary are "so grateful for Brian for showing up when he did and being able to rescue her."

"Everybody’s got the capability to help. You never know what will come of it," James said of why he chose to assist the Morgans in their search.

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Gary told WHIO that Meadow is their "forever dog" and he "could not believe the people that turned out" to help search for their missing pet. "It was kind of like losing your child," he said of the fear brought on by the separation.

"I was loving all over her but she acted like no big deal," Gary said of reuniting with Meadow. "But then when we got ready to leave that spot — usually Meadow doesn’t get in the car and normally you have to pick her up and put her in the car. Not this time. She jumped up in the car [and] laid down. Kind of looked at me like, 'Let’s go.'"

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