posted February 14, 2013 05:21 PM            

Unbeknown to Officer Jones, a nearby motorist took a photo of the officer's kindhearted gesture. A short time later, the photo of Officer Jones attempting to wrangle the stubborn little pooch was at the top of the popular social network Reddit.

KHOU 11 News has more details. Cujo, the dog, had escaped his home on Monday morning. One of his owners, Jeremy Zapalac, organized a search party in the neighborhood. But after an hour, it started to rain. "He hates water," Zapalac said of the rat terrier.

The dog had wandered over to a nearby highway. Fortunately, Officer Jones saw the small dog, stopped his car (and traffic), and generally went the extra mile to make sure he got home safely.

[Related: NYPD officer photographed giving boots to barefoot homeless man melts icy hearts online]

"He’s not going to make it if I don’t do something," Jones said of the tiny dog. "When I saw it and saw the size of it, I immediately hit my lights and shut all the lanes off."

Jones wasn't sure the dog would go with him, but it turned out Cujo was happy to see him. "You know how Chihuahuas are. You're not really sure if you can trust 'em or not. But he kind of looked at me and said, 'Man, I'm glad you're here.' He let me pick him right up. Stuck him in the back seat of the patrol car."

Jones handed Cujo over to an animal control officer who reunited the lost dog with his owners. They were clearly grateful. A few hours later, the owners sent a thank-you email to the police. It was published at The Huffington Post:

Just wanted to send a big thanks for the kindness shown to my "4 legged" son this morning! ... As I was walking on Farrington side of park my husband drove up and said that Animal Control had just brought him home. He said an officer had seen him in the middle of Spencer Hwy. and the officer had stopped traffic to help our little guy! Words cannot describe how grateful I am for this wonderful, caring officer and his kind deed!! It is a wonderful feeling to know we have people like him looking out for us...

I kept reminding myself that he had his tag with his name, address & phone number. Then I would think of how small he is and worry all over again... After a bath and his arthritis medication he has been resting all day. Safe, warm, and home again. All because someone did care!

Again, our sincere thanks:

Don and Diwanna Zapalac and Family