Woman Reunited With Beloved Pug After Six Months Apart: 'Crying'

A woman broke down in tears after being reunited with her dog after six months apart.

Plusha the pug greeted her human companion Kristina Ryback with flowers as she came through the gate at Sheremetyevo International Airport near Moscow when she returned home after spending six months studying abroad in Rome.

Ryback told Newsweek she suspected her beloved pug might be with her parents at the airport but that didn't make it any less emotional.

"Mom tried to make it a surprise but I guessed she would bring Plusha to the airport," she said. "I burst into tears when she recognized me and ran to me."

Their emotional reunion was captured in a video shared to TikTok by Ryback under the handle guulliikk. It captured the moment she said goodbye to Plusha before heading off on her studies as well as their happy reunion.

In the second half of the clip, Plusha can be seen charging towards Ryback with flowers attached to her harness. While the flowers may have been put there by Ryback's parents, it's clear from Plusha's excited reaction that she was delighted to see her owner again.

"If my future husband doesn't meet me the same way, he won't be my husband," Ryback wrote alongside the clip.

Ryback may have been the one who ended up crying, but there have been proven instances of dogs producing tears when reunited with their human companions.

A study published in Current Biology saw researchers measure the volume of tears produced by 18 dogs in their normal home environment with their owner. This was compared with the volume produced within the first five minutes of being reunited with their owner after more than five hours of separation.

They found that the dogs produced a significantly larger volume of tears when reunited with their owner. Crucially, this increase was not seen when the dogs were reunited with a familiar human that was not their owner.

Plush, which translates as "Pretzel" in Russian, came into Ryback's life four years ago, as a birthday gift from her mom and a close friend.

"I was going through a difficult time and had had some relationship issues," Ryback said. "I really wanted to have someone around who would never betray me and would never leave me."

Ryback had always wanted a pug, so Plusha was her dream dog. The pair enjoyed several happy years together with Plusha reveling in a life that allowed her to do her two favorite things: sleep and eat.

However, more recently, Ryback's studies have taken her to Italy, with Plusha remaining back home with her parents. The separation has been tough.

"It's very difficult," Ryback said. "I really miss her."

So while their recent reunion was a happy one, it was tinged with sadness for Ryback as she knew she would be returning to Rome two weeks later.

"I was very happy and at the same time I was very sad," she said.

But Ryback is determined to be reunited with Plusha for good eventually.

"My plan is to move to London and transport my dog," she said. "It will be difficult since she is a pug and not every airline takes them on board, but I am making every effort and considering all the options."

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