( CNN ) Deciding to move on after his beloved German shepherd was stolen from his backyard 18 months ago was n't easy for Richard Brower . `` I never gave up hope , '' Brower said , `` I 'd just come to the realization that I could n't go on without another dog . '' He 'd enlisted the help of his motorcycle-riding buddies and nearly everyone from the dog park in the search . Anyone seen walking a German shepherd had been , at one time , accosted by him or his friends . His searches were fruitless . `` It was heartbreaking , '' Brower said . `` Absolutely horrible . '' His heart-wrenching decision to search for a new dog -- made after a year-and-a-half of endless searching for Dozer -- turned out to be the best decision he could 've made , as it led him back to his best friend in a miraculous way . `` It 's the closest thing to a miracle in my life , '' he said . Brower typed `` German shepherds for sale '' into an Internet browser , which led him first to Claresholm Animal Rescue Society . He clicked the link and shivers went down his spine . `` My heart stopped , '' Brower said , `` the second I opened the page . '' Staring back at him on the rescue 's website was his dog , Dozer , the pup 's head cocked to the side , just as he remembered . Brower said he never doubted that it was his dog , but he sent the picture to his mom and sister for their opinion . His sister agreed it was Dozer , but his mom was doubtful . Brower said she was likely trying to save her son from unnecessary heartbreak , in case it was n't him . Brower called the shelter and reached Sylvia Giroux at Claresholm , Alberta . While on the phone , Brower 's dad , returning home from a business trip , stopped at the shelter , unbeknownst to his son . Brower said Dozer immediately started wagging his tail when his father came into the room . Still on the phone , Brower instructed his dad to snap his fingers once and then tell him what the dog did . He snapped and Dozer , a super well-trained dog who knows how to open and close doors and turn on lights , circled Brower 's dad and sat on his right hand side , waiting for his next command . `` There was no boo-hooing , but it was close , '' Giroux said , `` It was just such a wonderful thing . '' Giroux might 've kept it together , but Brower said everyone else was a different story . `` My dad was bawling , I was bawling on the phone , '' he said . And when Dozer got home -- there was more crying -- from Dozer . `` He almost knocked me over , '' Brower said . `` He came flying in , put his head into my arm and started doing that wailing that German shepherds do . '' Other than his having lived at the shelter for a month after he was picked up by a resident nearby , Brower does n't know much about Dozer 's whereabouts during the 18 months he was missing . He 's just thrilled to have his pup , who he calls a `` big sweet baby , '' back at home , back to normal . Normal , except for at the dog park , where families used to steer clear of the 125-pound pooch . `` Now that he 's a celebrity , everyone wants to hug him , '' Brower said . Dog rides bus to dog park .
Richard Brower 's dog was stolen from his backyard 18 months ago . The owner of the dog, a pit bull named Max, had been out walking with her two other dogs when she noticed something strange in the woods. Dozer is now a celebrity at the dog park .