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Credit: Inside the MagicAn animal recently got loose at Walt Disney World Resort, barreling past thousands of Disney Park guests and cast members before running all the way to a nearby hotel. Despite what you might assume, this runaway wasn’t out of Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park, but EPCOT!
Of course, Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park is home to most of Walt Disney World Resort’s animal residents. However, EPCOT houses The Seas With Nemo & Friends, an Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA) accredited facility that displays sea turtles, sharks, rescued manatees, and more. Guests can even book a tour to dive in the 5.7-million-gallon saltwater tank or stay dry and dine underneath it at the Coral Reef Restaurant.
It would be pretty difficult for a resident of The Seas to escape at EPCOT… According to reports, Walt Disney World Resort’s recent runaway was actually a service dog in training.
On Sunday evening, multiple Walt Disney World Resort guests took to social media to report a dog in a vest barreling through the World Showcase, even colliding with some guests. The young canine seemed spooked by the Luminous The Symphony of Us fireworks and ran so quickly that multiple Disney cast members and guests failed to catch it.
“Around 9:00 last night at EPCOT, walking over the bridge from Paris towards the Skyliner, a dog ran directly into the back of my legs,” u/Mysterious_Pain_9598 wrote on Reddit. “Poor thing was panicking and appeared scared of the fireworks. A man was running after him, but that dog was fast.”
“I was so worried about him,” the Disney Park guest continued. “He looked terrified. I heard security talking about him and people were trying to help. I believe he headed past the Skyliner and over the bridge towards either Boardwalk or the Yacht Club.”
The dog reportedly ran all the way to the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin hotels, using a path that typically takes guests around 15 minutes to walk.
“We saw a dog running by the Swan/Dolphin about 20 minutes ago but weren’t fast enough to catch him,” Redditor u/mjd459 wrote on Sunday evening. “Looked like he had a vest on and might have been a service dog.”
A few Disney Parks fans provided more information about the dog – including updates on its capture.
“A service dog training company was in the park with 4 mals as part of their final test to graduate their service dog course,” said u/colets23. “Once the fireworks started the dog took off from the US allll the way out the park by France. My wife and I ran after it from Japan to France and we met with the trainer where she said it was her client’s dog. We talked to the owner and trainer both. They said it had a tracker. Heard later it was found.”
“Dog was fine and was caught,” u/rilanthefirebug added.
Walt Disney World Resort hasn’t issued any public statements about the loose dog at EPCOT on Sunday evening.
What’s the most unexpected thing you’ve seen at Walt Disney World Resort or Disneyland Resort? Inside the Magic would love to hear from you in the comments!