Ingedia Holliman thought her closest companion was gone forever when her pet shih tzu Lucky was stolen from her front yard last April. She says she had given up all hope of seeing her beloved pooch ever again, even forcing herself to throw out all his toys.

However, fate intervened earlier this month. That's when the Dane County Humane Society in Wisconsin picked up Lucky thinking he was a stray.

They were about to adopt him out to a family when they scanned a microchip implanted in Lucky's skin and found that he already had a home. Holliman and her prized pooch were reunited earlier this week. She says she'll never forget the call that told her that her lucky was alive.

"They asked did I have a dog and I said yes, but I lost my dog a year and a half ago and they said guess what, we have your dog, and all I could do was cry," Holliman says.

Holliman tells me tonight that Lucky's captors have not yet been identified. She encourages all dog owners to get their dogs microchipped just in case.

Those microchips contain the pet owner's contact information. Pet owners can get their pets microchipped at their veterinarian's office or at the local humane society.