BERNARDSVILLE, N.J. (Somerset County) — A dog that escaped from a boarding and training facility in Bernardsville has been found safe after spending 32 days on the run and traveling through multiple New Jersey communities, according to Blairstown-based Buddha Dog Rescue & Recovery.
Hardy escaped July 30 after slipping out of a newly placed collar while staying at the Bernardsville facility, the rescue organization said.
For approximately the first 11 days, Hardy remained within about a two-mile radius of where he escaped. Buddha Dog Rescue & Recovery said it was able to capture an image of him at a feeding station within two days of becoming involved in the search and placed a trap in the area.
A severe thunderstorm with heavy rain moved through, however, and Hardy did not return to the feeding station.
From there, the search expanded as sightings of Hardy were reported miles apart in communities including Bernardsville, Millington, Dunellen and Piscataway.
According to the organization, Hardy appeared to travel along roadways, railroad tracks, power lines, wooded areas, neighborhoods and connecting greenways. Searchers also believe he found food at feral cat and wildlife feeding locations along the way.
Hundreds of posters were distributed, cameras and feeding stations were repeatedly relocated, and updates were shared with residents as Hardy moved from one community to another.
Several nights before his recovery, Hardy was spotted in the Dunellen and Piscataway area. Searchers identified a corridor between homes they believed he was using, and another sighting was later reported near the same area.
After two additional sightings were reported, a feeding station was established, and Hardy appeared on camera around 11 p.m. Sunday, according to Buddha Dog Rescue & Recovery.
Hardy’s owners, Spencer and Emily, were instructed to travel to Blairstown to retrieve a trap and bring it back to Piscataway. The trap was in place around 2:30 a.m.
After raccoons and a fox approached the trap, Hardy arrived and cautiously circled it before walking inside around 3:20 a.m.
“HE WAS SAFE…After 32 days of running scared…After countless miles…After highways, railroad tracks, power lines, woods and unfamiliar neighborhoods…After thunderstorms, scorching summer days and nights spent surviving completely on his own…
Hardy was finally safe.”
Buddha Dog Rescue & Recovery credited Hardy’s family and residents throughout the communities he traveled through with helping bring the search to a successful conclusion.
“Every single sighting mattered, every share mattered, every person who kept their eyes open mattered. And we are incredibly grateful.”
The organization said the straight-line distance between Hardy’s escape point in Bernardsville and where he was ultimately captured in Piscataway was approximately 15 miles. His actual journey was considerably longer, however, as he traveled more than 20 miles outward at points, doubled back and repeatedly changed direction during his 32 days on the run.
The organization offered Hardy’s story as encouragement to other families searching for missing dogs.
“Never give up.
They are out there. They are surviving. And sometimes, when you least expect it, the opportunity you have been waiting for finally comes.”
