Australian Shepherd Zeb Crosses 7,500-Foot Bridge During Rush Hour with No Injuries

Zeb, an Australian Shepherd, went searching for his owners and crossed Seattle's Route 520 Evergreen Point Floating Bridge. Remarkably, he survived nearly unscathed.

By Kathryn Hawkins. Posted on February 07 2011

Dogs tend to get confused when their owners leave them in strange homes. So when an Australian shepherd named Zeb was left at a petsitter’s house while his family was out of town, he decided to spring into action.

Last Tuesday, he escaped from the Eastlake, Washington home where he was staying, and tried to make his way home to his owners. But that path carried him across the Route 520 Evergreen Point Floating Bridge—the longest floating bridge on Earth, stretching 7,500 feet from Seattle to Medina. The bridge has no walkways, and cars constantly zoom down its four lanes of traffic. In short, it’s no place for a stray dog.

Zeb didn’t make matters any easier, weaving between the eastbound and westbound lanes. Luckily, drivers took care to slow down for the lost dog. Though it was impossible to stop on the bridge, motorists phoned in alerts to the police and posted about the stray animal on Craigslist. The Washington State Patrol attempted to capture Zeb, but he jumped over a barrier and ran away from the officers.

Zeb’s owners, Megan and Dana Ferestein, spotted the Craigslist posts about their dog, and were terrified that he would be killed on the busy bridge. Although they were out of town, they sent friends out searching for him to no avail. But Zeb was finally spotted in a neighboring town on Thursday morning.

“He should have taken the Arboretum exit, but missed it,” Megan joked to the Seattle Times.

Zeb was hungry and had injured his paw, but otherwise, he was no worse for the wear. The Feresteins are happy to have him home, and will be sure to keep their gates secure.

“It’s a miracle he made it across 520,” she said. “It’s a good thing we won’t get a ticket in the mail because he crossed without his transponder.”

Filed under: Animals and Pets,

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