Missing therapy dog found and reunited with owner after tragedy on Las Vegas Strip

LAS VEGAS (KSNV) - Here's a happy update to the story of how a dog became just one more symbol of hope in the midst of so much sorrow in our valley.

Tuesday night, News 3’s Reed Cowan met a California man whose therapy dog disappeared in a crowd of 22,000 people running from the gunfire Sunday night at the Route 91 Country Festival.

Ryan Needham is the dog’s owner and escaped with his life. Ever since that night, Needham has lived out of his truck trying to find his dog.

News 3’s story went viral, with hundreds of viewers joining the cause to find the dog.

Nearly three nights after “Rou” the dog went missing, Needham found the dog in a field next to the venue.

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“We saw her run by as we were talking to your viewers. I jumped over the fence, I kneeled down, she ran, jumped into my arms!" said Needham.

Rou is thin, her nose muddied, and you can see in her eyes a sense of trauma from her ordeal.

But she’s alive and Needham says, "There are no words. It’s crazy, I'm so glad everybody spirits can be lifted by our dog's story. Maybe it can help a little but I guess ... I don’t know. This dog is a symbol of hope she is she’s the new mascot for Vegas.”