Missing Jack Russell terrier from Pennsylvania found 3,000 miles away near Portland, Ore.

PORTLAND, Ore. – A Jack Russell terrier that went missing from its Pennsylvania home has turned up at an animal shelter nearly 3,000 miles away.

A good Samaritan this month spotted the 7-year-old dog named Gidget wandering in the Portland suburb of Tualatin, and brought her to the Bonnie L. Hays Animal Shelter, said Deborah Wood, manager of Washington County Animal Services.

Wood said Wednesday that a microchip implanted in Gidget revealed that the owner lived near Philadelphia. Contacted by the shelter, the owner said her dog has been missing since April 22, two days after Easter.

It’s a mystery how the dog arrived in Oregon.

“She’s never lived here; there is nothing that would bring her here,” Wood said. “So a human somehow brought her here, but we don’t know who or how.”

Wood says Gidget was a little thin, but otherwise in good shape. She has regained some of the estimated five pounds she lost during her 4 1/2 months away from home.

“Her eyes are shiny and she’s energetic and her fur looks great,” Wood said.

The shelter and the owner are trying to figure out how to get the dog back to Pennsylvania. The owner doesn’t have the money to fly out, Wood said, and the shelter doesn’t provide transportation. Wood said perhaps someone travelling from Portland to Philadelphia would be willing to bring the dog with them.

“I kind of see this as a Disney story,” Wood said. “And we are very committed to the happy ending that we’ll figure out how to get her back to her home.”

Wood said she wants to get the owner’s permission before giving her name to reporters.

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