Missing dog rescued after spending 18 hours stranded in the middle of the highway: Owner was 'panicked’

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A pup is safe after escaping his home and spending over a day stranded on a highway median. 

Yoda is a one-year-old German shepherd from Lancashire, England, who recently managed to escape his home, according to SWNS. 

His owner, 44-year-old Stephen Hunt, said he was shocked and panicked when he realized his young dog had escaped.

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"I panicked. I didn’t know what to do," Hunt told SWNS. 

Hunt told Fox News Digital in a message that his sweet pup is a "softy" and tends to be "nervous around strangers, [but he has] pure love for those he knows."

Yoda escaped from his home and ran before becoming stranded in the middle of the highway.  (SWNS)

After posting on Facebook and alerting his friends about his missing Yoda, Hunt said he was alerted that the dog had been spotted in the area — and then on the highway. 

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When a police officer failed to grab Yoda who was nearby, the pup ran down the highway median. 

Law enforcement shut down the highway once it became aware there was a dog on the median.  (SWNS)

Next, Hunt decided to call in reinforcements who knew his beloved animal.

Hunt’s friend, Steven Elmes, took his dog Xena to the area where Yoda had been spotted to see if maybe the two of them could track him down.

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"Xena had taken him three bridges down on the motorway because she scented him out, and then Steven [Elmes] also saw him on the central reservation," he told SWNS. 

He added, "My friend rang 999 and I rang the highway agency. They had to shut all of the motorway [down]."

Stephen Hunt is Yoda's dog owner. He told Fox News Digital that he felt "pure panic while waiting for the police … to arrive." He said he hoped his dog "didn't try and cross [the highway] before they shut it [down]." (SWNS)

Local law enforcement was forced to shut down the highway in both directions while trying to rescue the dog. 

Hunt told Fox News Digital he felt "pure panic while waiting for the police and highways to arrive — hoping he didn't try and cross before they shut it [down]."

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Finally, 18 hours after Yoda fled his home, the dog jumped over a gate within the median and was reunited with his owner. 

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Hunt told Fox News Digital that the dog jumped into his arms and cried when he spotted him. 

Yoda the dog was rescued after spending 18 hours on a highway median.  (SWNS)

Now, Hunt said Yoda is safe at home — adding that he has "a little more bounce about him."

The pup, he said, "hoovered down two bottles of water and three bowls of food" upon returning home. 

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Hunt told Fox News Digital that Yoda’s paws are worn — but he's recovering well and was excited to be home.