A small yellow mongrel in China – nicknamed “Huang Huang” by bus drivers – has become a viral sensation after it's been seen searching for its missing owner at a bus stop for the past 16 days since Monday, according to South China Morning Post (SCMP).

The story, which was first reported by a local Chinese daily Huaxi Metropolis Daily, goes that the dog comes to a bus stop in Huaxi every morning at 8am to hop on buses and look for its owner for the rest of the day. Located in the province of Jiangsu, Huaxi claims to be the "richest village in China".

A witness, ticket seller Yang, was quoted in the report saying he initially thought the dog was sniffing around looking for food, adding that Huang Huang would “inspect” the buses and other vehicles stopping by till the evening.

A worker at the temple reportedly said Huang Huang would peer into windows and look up at passengers faces while he “inspects”.

While most bus drivers assumed that the dog was abandoned, no one knows what happened to the owner, who was seen with the dog at the temple “half a month ago”, eyewitnesses said.

Photos of Huang Huang went viral online after China online citizens posted photos of it on Sina Weibo. Many compared the dog to Hachiko, a famous Japanese Akita dog who faithfully waited for his dead owner outside a train station for 10 years.

Up to 10 people have tried to claim ownership of the dog but each time, Huang Huang failed to respond to various nicknames, reported Huaxi Metropolis Daily.