Search Continues For German Shepherd Seen Along I-580

PLEASANTON, CA — CHP is asking the public for help finding a German shepherd that has repeatedly evaded authorities around I-580 over the past two days.

Officers managed to get the dog off the freeway Wednesday but were unable to capture it, CHP Dublin said Thursday afternoon. Officers returned Thursday to I-580 near Hacienda Drive and Hopyard Road after receiving new reports of the dog, but were unable to locate it.

CHP is now circulating a lost-dog flyer and asking people in the Pleasanton and Dublin area to report sightings to 510-609-9688. People are advised not to chase, call out, or whistle at the dog.

The dog was first reported Wednesday at 6:56 a.m. on westbound I-580 east of Hacienda Drive, a CHP spokesperson told Patch. Multiple callers reported that the dog was running against traffic on both sides of the freeway, including on eastbound I-580 near the Hopyard Road exit. Three units from CHP and personnel from Alameda County Animal Control tried until around noon Wednesday to catch the dog, but it ran too quickly.

German shepherds can approach 30 mph at a sprint, according to the results of an American Kennel Club competition.

“This little fella gave us quite the chase this morning on I-580 westbound. Thank you to all the Good Samaritans who gave us a hand as he took foot bail,” CHP wrote in an Instagram post Wednesday.

The dog was spotted again Thursday morning at 7:25 a.m. running in a traffic lane on westbound I-580 near the Dougherty Road on-ramp in Dublin, according to a CHP incident log. A few minutes later, another caller reported that the dog was running in and out of traffic lanes.

Over the next two hours, callers repeatedly reported the dog running in and out of lanes and along the shoulders between the Dougherty and Hopyard Road on-ramps. At one point, the dog reportedly approached a driver’s door and appeared curious about the driver, then lied down on the left shoulder. By 9 a.m., drivers were stopping and trying to catch the dog near the Hopyard Road on-ramp.

A CHP officer arrived around 9:10 a.m., but the dog escaped again. About 20 minutes later, officers reported that it was walking against traffic and running in and out of lanes as CHP continued to search, and animal control units were called to the area.

A representative from Alameda County Animal Services told Patch that the dog was also reported on city streets near those on-ramps, and was observed running onto the freeway. Animal control officers set a trap for the dog in a wooded area near the freeway.

The search will continue until the dog is captured, the CHP spokesperson told Patch Thursday.

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