Two-year-old Ban yapped and jumped into the arms of her owner, a woman in her 50s and a resident of Kesennuma in Miyagi prefecture, a port town severely hit in the March 11 disaster, television footage showed.

A Japan Coast Guard elite rescue unit picked up the dog after spotting it on a floating house roof two kilometres (more than a mile) from Kesennuma, in a rescue widely broadcast as a rare happy moment amid the calamity.

The woman recognised her pet, which was kept in an animal shelter following its rescue late last week, after watching NHK: "I recognised her immediately after seeing her face," she said, hugging the animal.

"I am happy that she seems healthy. I want to cherish her when I take her back," she added, as Ban licked her face.

The Japan Coast Guard is still searching for thousands of people missing after the magnitude 9.0 earthquake and tsunami struck.

The twin disasters killed 12,175 people and 15,489 remain missing, national police said Monday.

del.icio.us	Digg	Reddit
YahooMyWeb	Google	Facebook

Tsunami-stranded dog reunited with owner in Japan Japan plant operator offers 'consolation' payments Japan battles to stop radiation leak into sea Hong Kong speeds up visas for Japan expats 'Skype school' brings knowledge to Indian village Waste Ash From Coal Could Save Billions In Repairing US Bridges And Roads Radioactive water leak into sea stops at Fukushima: Jiji New Laser Technology Could Revolutionize Communications Brazil should consult natives on Amazon dam: panel First Broad-Scale Maps Of Life On The Sea-Shelf Branson unveils 'flying' sub to plumb ocean depths Japan fishermen vow to rebuild tsunami-hit lives Human Impacts On The Marine Ecosystems Of Antarctica U.N.: Arctic sees record ozone loss Fishermen, greens see red over Alaska navy exercises Antarctic Icebergs Play A Previously Unknown Role In Global Carbon Cycle, Climate Research On Satellite Imagery Aims To Advance Sustainable Agriculture First ban on all Japanese food over nuclear crisis Researchers Say Children Need Horticultural Interventions New Information Provides Sustainable Options For Greenhouse Operations Oregon volcano to be monitored Son becomes guardian of Indonesian volcano Thailand flood toll reaches 40 Lone pine tree symbol of hope in Japan tsunami city French, UN troops in action against Gbagbo camp: France 167 foreigners leave Ivory Coast main city: French military Ivory Coast opposition blockade lifted, police desert: UN A New Scramble For African Riches - Its Consumers Archaeologists Explore Iraqi Marshes For Origins Of Urbanization 'Bionic eye' implant offers hope to the blind High seas may have led migrants to Taiwan Parody blooms on Twitter