This Sunday, thousands of Facebook users around the world were moved by the encounter that took place in the Brazilian stadium Beira-Rio de Porto Alegre. There, the Uruguayan Ignacio Etchitchury reunited with his dog, Negro, who had disappeared almost two months ago.
Negro was not abandoned at all. In fact, he had become Jefferson and was walking together with a group of English supporters to the World Cup. By pure chance this group of friends that left England to arrive at Brazil ran into Negro in Solís, Uruguay.
The English supporters Adam Burns (27), David Bewick (32), Pete Johnston (30) and Ben Olsen created a project they named Walk to the World Cup and left Argentina on foot towards Brazil.
While walking around Uruguay, Negro joined them. They immediately adopted him and named him “Jefferson”.
The dog became a loyal friend who walked almost 500 kilometers with the group. During the trip, the English supporters uploaded pictures and videos of the new member of the group to their Facebook profile.
It was then that Ignacio recognized his pet on the Internet and got in touch with them who were very surprised by the news. In order to prove he was the real owner, Ignacio had to send several pictures of Negro as a puppy.
“Here there are some more pictures of baby Jefferson and his real dad, Nacho,” they wrote on their wall together with pictures that evidenced his origin.
On their Facebook profile, users from all over the world where touched by Negro´s (or Jefferson´s) story.
The Reunion
It took place in Porto Alegre. Ignacio got there thanks to a “ride from a farmer” as the group stated on Facebook.
Despite being happy with his new owners, Negro did not hesitate to run towards Ignacio when he called him.
“After some weeks I had lost hope. I have no words for them. They were very nice since the day I got in touch with them. I would like to thank them, now Negro has two names,” said the Uruguayan to Brazilian media.
Now Ignacio would like to stay for the first Uruguay World Cup game in Fortaleza next June 14th. By means of their group, these English football fans are seeking for accommodation for the Uruguayan and Negro in Brazil.