A lost dog’s journey across the Canadian border and back

FORT KENT, Maine — A lost dog’s journey across the Canadian border and back was complicated by coronavirus restrictions limiting movement from a town on one side of the St. John River to a Maine town on the other.

Diamond, a German shepherd, escaped from her home in New Brunswick on Saturday and crossed a border bridge into Fort Kent, Maine, where coronavirus restrictions prevented her caretakers from following, the Bangor Daily News reported.

The owner, Paryse Michaud, was at her daughter’s hockey tournament several hours away when she got the news that the 17-month-old shepherd had escaped from their home in Clair, New Brunswick. Michaud’s father was looking after the dog when she escaped, the newspaper reported.

Michaud posted a plea for help on Facebook, saying the dog had crossed the border.

Over the next six hours, Michaud received updates from people in Maine tracking the dog, the newspaper reported. A friend found the dog in a garage and co-ordinated with other friends on the Canadian side for a handoff.

Finally, Michaud got a text with a photo of the dog and Annik Sirois, a family friend, in a car on the Canadian side of the border.

Diamond was united with Michaud and her family on Sunday after being handed off at a border station, the newspaper reported.

The Associated Press