A drone was used to rescue a dog that wandered from a rest stop along the New Jersey Turnpike, officials said.
Abbie, a 9-year-old golden retriever mix, was traveling from a South Carolina shelter to a new home in Maine. The canine was one of several in a van that had stopped at a service area in East Brunswick at about 6 a.m. ET on Jan. 3, according South Carolina-based Final Victory Animal Rescue.
The animals’ handlers were allowing the dogs to take a bathroom break when Abbie dashed away. She was found the next day, approximately 25 miles away from the rest stop, on one of New Jersey’s busiest highways.
“We have been transporting dogs since 2017, and out of thousands of dogs, she is only the second to ever slip away from a transporter,” Final Victory Animal Rescue said.
Drone technology helped locate the wayward dog.
“I was up and out in literally seven minutes. I found Abbie,” said Mike Parziale, of the New Jersey-based Unmanned Search and Rescue drone team.
The AirTag on Abbie’s harness was a key component in finding her, according to Final Victory Animal Rescue. The tag tracked the dog to Woodbridge but lost her when Abbie rambled into nearby marshland.
Parziale said the USAR team has participated in more than 100 pet rescues and was able to find Abbie. The drone utilizes a thermal camera.
Woodbridge Township police eventually rescued Abbie around 2 a.m. ET Sunday.
Katy Cowan, the founder of Final Victory Animal Rescue, said she was relieved that Abbie was found safe.
“Just looking at the maps, and when I was watching her AirTag, there’s like 25 lanes of traffic,” she said.
Abbie was slightly injured, suffering a bruised hip likely caused from a vehicle graze.
After spending a day at a local New Jersey veterinarian, a transport van returning to South Carolina from New England brought Abbie back to her former foster family, who decided to keep the dog.
She is scheduled to have surgery to repair her injured hip. She is expected to make a full recovery.
“We look forward to sharing the news of Abbie’s final victory once she is healed,” Final Victory Animal Rescue wrote in a social media post.
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