Worried pup runs to hospital 20 blocks away by herself to visit her sick owner

When she learned that her best friend was battling cancer in the hospital, Sissy knew she had to be there.

Whether the hospital let dogs in or not, she was sure going to try to get in to see her owner

The 10-year-old miniature, Schnauzer walked 20 blocks through Cedar Rapids, Iowa, alone to Mercy Medical Center.

Sissy's owner, Nancy Franck, was there for about two weeks after the surgery. Franck's husband, Dale Franck, is taking care of Sissy and their other mini Schnauzer Barney at their home.

Dale let the dogs out to go to the bathroom and Sissy never came back

“I think both are back home,” Dale Franck told TODAY. “I was panicking.”

Sissy marched right to that hospital and went through the automatic door.

She didn’t bother coming to the guest sign-in desk.

She will find her mother on her own without anyone's help.

“She was on a mission that night to see her mother, but she couldn't find the right elevator to take.,” Dale Franck told ABC News.

Dale Franck got a phone call at 5:30 a.m. from security officer Samantha Conrad saying that they had Sissy.

“She found my phone number and home address from the tag on her collar,” Dale Franck said. “I was so relieved and I told my daughter to pick her up.”

When Wood arrives, she can get Sissy up in a few minutes.

When Franck laid eyes on her dog, she thought that her daughter, Sarah Wood, snuck her in.

“I said, ‘Did you sneak this dog in?’ Sarah said, ‘No, [Sissy] snuck herself in,'” Franck said. “Set the door off — she got in by herself, too. So, she was on a mission.”

Everyone was just glad that Sissy was OK.

“Nancy and Sissy dated for a few minutes then she came back to me,” Dale Franck said. “She’s my baby, and though it sounds funny now, it wasn’t funny when she was missing. I was worried sick. I’m glad she’s OK.”

But Sissy is glad she was there for her mother and made her smile.

She needed her mom to know that she was there for her during this difficult time.

No one is sure how Sissy managed to find her way to the hospital where her mother was. 

“The only thing I could think of was that Sissy used to ride with me to pick up my wife from work next door to the hospital,” Dale Franck said. “But we’ve never walked that route before.”

But dogs are a lot smarter than people give them. They also have superhuman senses.

“She has a close relationship with Sissy,” he added. “Sissy’s 11 now, and we bought her when she was just about 8-weeks-old. She came up to me, scratched my leg, and fell asleep on my shoulder. I’d say we didn’t pick her, she picked us.”

Sissy’s story ended up going viral, making her an internet celebrity.

“Think about it: a small dog from Cedar Rapids, who simply wanted to see his mother. She didn't know she was doing anything out of the ordinary. She is just doing what any loyal, loving dog wants to do: show their humans how much love they give. Sissy has just found a unique way to do it, and in turn, she's gotten all that love back from people she doesn't know around the world.,” her family shared.