Medal for runaway dog who completed half marathon

A black Labrador named Boogie met up with runners just as the YMCA Half Marathon was starting in Evansville, Indiana, on Saturday after absconding from his home.



Boogie braved rain and ignored numerous smelly distractions to finish the race, gaining a great deal of attention from runners and race watchers along the way. But when Boogie crossed the finish line nobody knew who he belonged to, so police sent out an alert to find his owners and he was taken to an animal shelter.

It was only after Boogie’s owner Jerry Butts noticed he was missing and went looking for him at the animal shelter, that he found out about Boogie's big accomplishment. “I found out later that he was all over Facebook and he’d run the marathon,” Mr Butts said, joking that Boogie may have been scouting out the race route during walks.



Not wanting Boogie’s efforts to go unrecognized , race organisers later awarded him a medal for completing the race in a special ceremony. Local police said they believe Boogie is the first dog to complete a half marathon without assistance from a human. There's no word if Boogie will be running the race again next year.

With news video.