Ojai (USA) - What happened to four-legged friend "Maya" after she was rescued is something you wish for every dog who has not had an easy life so far. After her very personal happy ending, the pit bull dog has now returned to the place where her new life once began: the animal shelter. What happened there is simply touching!

Bitch Maya was surrendered to an animal control officer in a field in California in March 2023. The white and brown pit bull terrier then ended up at a facility run by the Ventura County Humane Society in Ojai . There, the caretakers quickly fell in love with the very three-year-old dog.

"The pit bull terrier is not only simply adorable, but also totally sweet! Maya loves to cuddle and is very playful," reads a Facebook post from that time.

Although Maya was a sociable animal, it was to take over a year before a suitable family was found.

Her new owners decided to pay a visit to the animal shelter. They were no doubt particularly curious to see how their four-legged friend would react to seeing her former caretakers again.

The encounter was captured on video - luckily! Because the pit bull's reaction couldn't be more beautiful!

"Maya was at the shelter for over a year. A year later, she returned to thank the staff who took care of her," the facility writes about its clip on TikTok . In it, you can see the dog being led into a room full of keepers. Maya immediately rushes up to the staff and greets them warmly. "She recognized them immediately," it continues.

Although it had been over a year since Maya had seen the shelter staff, she could still remember exactly who had been so good to her. And it was clear to the four-legged friend that these people deserved nothing but love.

"Moments like these are why we do what we do 🤍", says a delighted Humane Society Ventura County.