How did a small pup makes its way into a car's undercarriage?
That's exactly what happened on Wednesday afternoon when a Chihuahua ran under a Phoenix police officer's patrol car.
Fear drove the dog to hide in the undercarriage for several minutes, officials told ABC15.
According to Phoenix police, Lt. Tom Van Dorn was patrolling the area of 47th Avenue and Encanto Boulevard when he came across a pack of small dogs that were running in the street.
We had the pleasure of reuniting Tahoe with Lt. Van Dorn this morning at Fox 10. The Phoenix Police Lieutenant called us...
Posted by Maricopa County Animal Care & Control (MCACC) - Adopt at pets.maricopa.gov on Sunday, March 13, 2016
The lieutenant honked at the animals and three of them left the area, but a pup with white and beige coloring ran under the officer's car. The officer stopped his vehicle only to find the animal somehow crawled into the undercarriage of the patrol vehicle.
"I'm a dog owner, I'm also a huge animal lover in general particularly when it comes to dogs," Lt. Van Dorn said. He added that a police officer's job is to help maintain the public safe, and that includes helping "our four-legged friends at time and we do what we can to try and keep them safe as well."
Phoenix police say the dog, now named Tahoe, was stuck for about 20 to 30 minutes and wouldn't budge, not even when a hot dog was offered.
Eventually, Tahoe was rescued with the help of Maricopa County Animal Care & Control officials.
Dog seeking shelter in police car engine rescued and safe at Maricopa County Animal Care & Control-Phx. #abc15 pic.twitter.com/AlFfV4E15c
— John Pellizzari (@JohnAPellizzari) March 10, 2016
Tahoe was held for 72 hours with the county before being placed up for adoption.
Officials said the pup looks to be in good health and was likely not living on the streets for a long time.
If you're interested in adopting Tahoe, he is at the West Valley Animal Care Center (2500 S. 27th Avenue) in Phoenix.
