Chen Yiyang and Benben (self portrait). [Photo provided to China Daily]

Beijing – And this just in, in time for Valentine's Day: a Beijing man and his dog have been re-united after an absence of seven years.

Chen Yiyang, 21, said in an online posting that he was riding to his parents' home after work on Feb 6 when he saw a brown dog crouching by the roadside.

"It looked like my dog. I stopped and took off my helmet. I whistled and called her name, 'Benben'. She stood still and looked at me for three seconds before rushing towards me like crazy," Chen wrote.

Chen got Benben in 2002, when he was in junior high school; the dog was just one month old. One day in 2005, Chen took Benben out for a walk in a park and she went missing. Unleashed, she ran into the bushes and didn't come back.

A combo photo of Benben

Chen has received a large of number of comments from well wishers online.

"I also have a dog so I know how deep the bond between man and dog can be. I cried when I saw that you and Benben had been reunited," wrote "Zhuziqing".

However, others criticized Chen for walking Benben without a leash.

"Walking a leashed dog in the city not only frightens some people, but also make it possible for the dog to fight with others, and it's easier for it to run away. It's your own fault for not leashing your dog," wrote "Ostreich".