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Man reunited with dog after photo goes viral

(MyFoxBoston.com) – A California man got his dog back after a stranger took a heartbreaking photo at an animal shelter.

Dave Thomas, of San Bernardino, was briefly jailed last week for failure to appear in court for traffic violations, which lead to the impoundment of his dog.

When he was released, his dog, Buzz Lightyear, a 2-year-old pit bull mix, was waiting for him at the shelter, but Thomas did not have the $400 to get him out. He only had $6 in his pocket.

As Thomas learned he couldn't get Buzz Lightyear back, Maria Sanchez, a photographer at the shelter was watching and snapped a picture of him, the Huffington Post reported.

"He was pouring water into his dog's water bowl, his dog sat there and licked up the water for about a minute, he sat down next to him and started weeping," Sanchez said.

Sanchez posted the photo to Facebook, where strangers pledged to help the man. The image went viral and more than $2,000 was raised and Thomas was able to get Buzz Lightyear back, clickorlando.com reported.

As of Thursday morning, the Facebook page had more than 11,000 shares and over 4,200 likes.