Drone Video Captures the Moment This Lost Dog With a Broken Leg Was Finally Found

A dog in Illinois who’d been missing for a week was found on Sunday thanks to a local pet rescue organization and a thermal imaging drone. And the moment they found the poor pup is so triumphantly heartwarming, that you’ll probably wind up watching the rescue at least a couple of times like we did.

The ordeal all started on Dec. 31, when a Bernese Mountain Dog named Charlie went missing in the Crystal Lake area of northern Illinois. Charlie’s owner Kate Belmonte was understandably distraught and posted messages to Facebook about Charlie.

Belmonte got help from Dog Gone Pet Recovery, a local animal rescue organization, who enlisted Smithic Air for drone support. The drone had thermal imaging that allows you to spot warm objects on the ground.

Dog Gone Pet Recovery in Illinois and Smithic Air posted a video to Facebook and YouTube showing the moment on Jan. 5 that Charlie was spotted, and you can see that little orange dot where they zero in on Charlie just before switching to a regular camera mode to confirm it’s him. It’s quite a thing to watch as they clearly get emotional at having found him.

Charlie was found just a few minutes away from his home but wasn’t able to walk due to a broken femur. They believe he was hit by a car.

Local ABC News TV station talked with Belmonte and her fiancee about the rescue, celebrating the “unbelievable technology” that allowed Charlie to come home.

“David and I are completely blown away by the support of the community that we live in,” Belmonte wrote on Facebook. “Only living here a few years we have met so many wonderful people (unfortunately under these circumstances) I have been contacted by thousands of people reaching out and sending support and well wishes 🙏 and seriously thank you so much to everyone who was keeping their eyes out for Charlie!!”

“You are all such incredible people!! If only Charlie knew how he has become the neighborhood celebrity lol,” Belmote continued.

The family has set up a GoFundMe to help pay for Charlie’s medical costs, a campaign that’s raised over $5,200 at the time of this writing.